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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27463969">Rogue Cop</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/NicoRosberg06/pseuds/NicoRosberg06'>NicoRosberg06</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Glee</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Detectives, Police, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, U.S. Navy SEALs</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 18:02:33</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>38</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>79,326</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27463969</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/NicoRosberg06/pseuds/NicoRosberg06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Finn Hudson's wife, who was pregnant with his child, died while he was serving his third tour in Kandahar. Finn is wracked with grief and guilt. Turning to alcohol, he goes off the rails but somehow ends up joining the LAPD. Will pairing a high-strung detective with a rogue alcoholic be a disaster, or will it be the start of his happily ever after?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Blaine Anderson/Kurt Hummel, Quinn Fabray &amp; Kurt Hummel, Quinn Fabray &amp; Santana Lopez, Quinn Fabray/Finn Hudson, Rachel Berry/Finn Hudson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Good morning, sunshine!" Santana Lopez exclaimed, snapping open the blinds and letting light flood into the master bedroom. Her sister Quinn Fabray - well, not biological sister but given that they grew up together, they might as well be - groaned and rolled out of bed. The two of them were best friends, and had been since kindergarten. Although life tugged them in opposite directions (Quinn became a policeman and Santana a defense attorney), they had always stayed best friends, to the extent that after Quinn got divorced with her ex-husband, Santana moved in to help Quinn take care of her three children.</p><p>After a quick shower and she had gotten changed into a pantsuit, Quinn walked downstairs, where Santana passed her a cup of coffee.</p><p>"You nervous?" Santana asked. It was Quinn's first day back in the LAPD in almost a year, because one year ago, she had a heart attack and almost died. Another reason why Santana was still living with Quinn and her three kids, even after Quinn had steadied her life after the divorce. Many of their friends called Santana and Quinn sister wives as they lived together, were raising three kids together, and often bickered like a married couple.</p><p>"Please." Quinn scoffed. "I've been a cop for 15 years. I'm just excited about getting back to work, that's all."</p><p>"Quinn… you know you don't have to go back." Santana said.</p><p>"What? Hey, what do you mean by that?" Quinn asked, slightly offended. Santana raised her hands in surrender.</p><p>"I'm just saying, we do all right." Santana remarked. Quinn shook her head, furiously.</p><p>"No, YOU do all right!" Quinn exclaimed.</p><p>"Q, it isn't about the money." Santana said, gently.</p><p>"And the alternative is what?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Stay home. Get fat. Play golf." Santana commented. Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"I'm 40, Santana, not 80." Quinn replied. "And anyways, the kids are home, right?"</p><p>"Yes." Santana said.</p><p>"Then I really need to get back to work!" Quinn exclaimed, jokingly. Santana laughed.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Pain. That's all Finn Hudson felt when he woke up. His whole body ripped with pain and his mind was no better. As light flooded into his small trailer on Long Beach, Finn groaned in pain. As always, he was nursing a wicked hangover. He was an alcoholic - there was no other way to say it. Every night, he would get rip-roaringly drunk to numb the constant, blinding agony he felt. Not even a year ago, he had lost the love of his life: Rachel Berry. The two of them had been together since High School, and she supported him throughout his various enlistments in the military/National defense. Straight out of high school, Finn had enlisted in the Navy and quickly joined the Navy SEALs - the most elite military group in the world. He was the top marksman and the strongest at hand to hand combat, which quickly attracted the attention of the CIA. After serving with the SEALs for 7 years, Finn then worked as a black-ops assassin for the CIA for another 7 years. He travelled all over the world, knowing nothing about his targets but their picture and their name, and yet ending their life without a care.</p><p>Despite all of this, Rachel stuck by him. Most of the 7 years of the CIA, she didn't even know where he lived. But she was ever-faithful, and the two got married when they were 32 (three years ago). That was when Finn had just retired from his life in the CIA and wanted to move onto better things. Then, the best thing that could have ever happened to him, happened. Rachel got pregnant! He was going to be a dad! But with all good things come a certain amount of bad, and the bad for Finn was that he got deployed by the CIA for one, final, top-secret mission. While he was gone, disaster struck…</p><p>During the week he was gone, Rachel had an aneurysm, causing her and the unborn baby she was carrying to die. Finn returned, devastated and distraught by the news. Maybe if he was home, he could have been there to get her to the hospital sooner. Maybe she would still be alive. Maybe now, he could be sitting with his wife and his baby boy. Instead, he was alone. Well, not totally. He still had Mr. Jack Daniels for company. Taking another shot, Finn picked up his pistol and held it to his chin. He wanted to die… he wanted it so badly, but he couldn't pull the trigger himself. If he did, he knew that Rachel, who was probably watching down on him from the sky, would be disappointed in him.</p><p>But today was going to be different. Somehow, Finn had gotten himself a job as a detective in the LAPD. Well, he knew how. He knew the city attorney on a… personal level. He had his first day of work in almost a year. He didn't know how he was going to cope. He so wanted an escape from this world, an exit to a different life, but he seemed to be closed in. Trapped in a life he didn't want to be living.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"There she is!"</p><p>"Welcome back, Fabray!"</p><p>"Back from the dead!"</p><p>Quinn smiled as she walked into the familiar precinct bullpen for the first time in a year.</p><p>"I was never dead, remember that!" Quinn replied.</p><p>"Hey Fabray! You got a second?" The precinct captain, Kurt Hummel, called her from his office. Quinn and Kurt had a very special connection as they were actually partners on the force for nearly a decade. Well, before Kurt was made a captain and Quinn had her heart attack.</p><p>"Sure, Cap!" Quinn replied and she followed him into his office.</p><p>"So, you look good." Kurt said. "Death suits you."</p><p>"Pocket square come with the promotion?" Quinn remarked, pointing to his outfit. Kurt shrugged.</p><p>"Bought it with the pay raise." He replied. Quinn snorted. The two of them embraced.</p><p>"Missed you, partner." Quinn said.</p><p>"You, too, sister." Kurt replied. Their relationship extended past the confines of work and into an amazing friendship outside the office. In fact, it was Quinn who introduced Kurt to his now husband, Blaine Anderson.</p><p>"You know, part of me was surprised to see you." Kurt remarked. "I figured with your sister-wife making a killing putting criminals back out on the street…"</p><p>"Come on, we have separate accounts!" Quinn argued. Kurt raised his hands in surrender.</p><p>"Relax. I can appreciate a fat paycheck as much as the next guy. Well, since I have you back, I got you a new partner. He's a transfer from Texas. Name's Finn Hudson. He's a Navy SEAL war hero. Purple Heart. Medal of Honor."</p><p>Quinn stood up.</p><p>"Look, it's my first day back. I don't want to have to babysit some adrenaline junkie with PTSD!"</p><p>"There's more." Kurt continued, ignoring Quinn. "I think he has a background."</p><p>"What do you mean?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Well, the guy speaks 14 languages, the State Department placed him here, and he has 7 years of his life redacted in his resume. You do the math."</p><p>"CIA?" Quinn asked. Kurt shrugged and nodded.</p><p>"Then what the hell is he doing here?" She wondered.</p><p>"Look, just show him around. This came from the city attorney personally."</p><p>Before they could say anything more, a uniformed officer ran into the room.</p><p>"We've got a bank robbery downtown. They've taken hostages." He said, before realising who was in the room. He gasped and smiled. "Hey! Welcome back, Fabray!" He exclaimed. "Thought you were dead."</p><p>Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Not yet…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Get on the ground! NOW!" One of the three armed thugs in the bank bellowed. The crowd, who were all in a state of complete panic, screamed as the man shot two rounds of his machine gun in the air.</p><p>Outside, Quinn pulled up outside the bank. There were already police cars surrounding the building but they couldn't move in yet because there were hostages in the building.</p><p>"Adrian, what's up?" Quinn asked one of the uniformed officers on the scene as she walked towards the building.</p><p>"Three armed suspects inside, about 20 hostages, and they beat up a security guard pretty bad." The officer recited.</p><p>"Anybody talk to them yet?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"They screamed something about wanting a helicopter." He remarked. Quinn laughed.</p><p>"Yeah, good luck with that." She scoffed. "Let me get you…"</p><p>She was cut off when an extremely disheveled, brunette guy walked up to her. He looked like someone who had just crawled out of a gutter somewhere: his shirt and pants were both stained with various drinks, he was wearing shades over his eyes, and his clothes and hair were both completely ruffled and messy.</p><p>"We should probably move in now, while we've still got the element of surprise." He commented. "Look, I'm not trying to tell you how to do your job or anything but it's not exactly Oceans Eleven in there."</p><p>"Hey, could you get this guy out of here?!" Quinn exclaimed, turning to one of the police officers patrolling the outside of the building. The man held out a hand for her to shake.</p><p>"Sorry, I didn't…"</p><p>He was now cut off when the door to the bank swung open and one of the thugs, holding a hostage in front of him like a shield, stood in view and fired a few rounds in the air to get the polices' attention.</p><p>"WHERE'S OUR CHOPPER?!" The thug shouted. Quinn turned on her walkie talkie.</p><p>"OK, we've got shots fired." Quinn said into the mic. "Set up a mobile command around the block. Let's go!"</p><p>She ducked behind her police car in case one of the men fired a round at them and spoke to herself.</p><p>"Ok, Fabray! First day back! You've got this!" She psyched herself up. When she peered out from behind the car, her eyes widened…</p><p>The brunette, holding a couple of pizza boxes in his hands, was walking right into the building.</p><p>"Hey! We got a civilian walking into the bank!" Quinn shouted. An officer looked at her.</p><p>"He's not a civilian; he's a cop." The officer informed her. "New guy named Finn or something."</p><p>"Finn Hudson?" She asked, flabbergasted.</p><p>"Yeah, how'd you know?" The officer asked. Finn put her head in her hands.</p><p>"Oh, Christ." She muttered into her hands.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn strolled confidently into the building, and the thugs didn't even initially notice him. They were too preoccupied with keeping the hostages still. Finn whistled the theme tune to Game of Thrones as he stood in the entranceway.</p><p>"Hello, bad guys!" He announced, cheerfully. "I brought some gifts." He said, pointing to the pizzas in his hands. The three thugs spun around to face him and all cocked their guns at him. Finn was unfazed though.</p><p>"Look, I wasn't sure what everyone liked, so I brought an assortment. I've got, like, pepperoni, margarita…"</p><p>Suddenly, the pizza boxes were kicked out of his hands, he was shoved down to his knees, and a gun was jabbed against the back of his head.</p><p>"We don't want any damn pizza!" The thug snapped. "We want a chopper!"</p><p>"Look, I'm new to the area, but it seems like you picked a pretty busy intersection for that. I'm not sure where you'd set a chopper down." Finn remarked, sarcastically.</p><p>"Is this funny to you?!" The thug with a gun to the front of his head shouted.</p><p>"No, not at all." Finn replied. "I just… I think you guys are in over your head. I mean, look, the guys out there, they're never going to take you seriously. Unless…"</p><p>Finn's voice trailed off.</p><p>"Unless WHAT?!" The thug shouted.</p><p>"You off someone." He suggested.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Outside, the police were all listening to the conversation and their eyes widened.</p><p>"Who is this lunatic?" An officer asked.</p><p>"Fabray's new partner." Another replied before turning to Quinn. "Teach him that?"</p><p>"I just met that man!" Quinn exclaimed. "That kind of crazy takes years to develop."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"And it can't just be anyone." Finn continued to the thugs. "They can't be old, or unattractive, or poor. Nah, they gotta be a big, rich, white dude."</p><p>"Maybe we should just off you!" The thug shouted. Finn grinned.</p><p>"Ooh! Offing a cop. Now, that would definitely get their attention! Although, I don't think you have the sack for it."</p><p>"Oh yeah?" The thug asked. He pointed to his friend who took off his jacket, revealing a suicide vest. "Either we get out of here alive, or NOBODY DOES!"</p><p>"You know… I think I left some side salads outside. I'm going to just get them real quick." Finn said, and he started to stand up.</p><p>"GET YOUR ASS DOWN!" The thug yelled. Finn sighed and got back down on his knees.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Meanwhile, outside, the whole SWAT team had arrived and geared up.</p><p>"We're ready to make entry. Awaiting your command." The SWAT officer told Quinn.</p><p>"Okay." Quinn replied. "Let's do this."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Back inside, the thug was getting ready to shoot Finn. He put the gun a couple of inches from Finn's forehead but weirdly to them, Finn didn't seem afraid. Instead, he seemed excited.</p><p>"I'm going to need you to do me a favour, okay?" He asked. Then, rather than pushing the gun away from him, Finn grabbed the barrel of the gun and tugged it so that it was touching his head. "Don't miss." He whispered.</p><p>"All right, guys, GO! GO! GO!" Quinn stated and the officers all got in position. "Get your team to the final cover position."</p><p>Once they were all in position, both Finn and Quinn started a countdown at exactly the same time, but for completely opposite reasons.</p><p>"One…" Finn growled.</p><p>"Two!" Quinn shouted.</p><p>Before either of them could count three, Finn, with moves like lightning, grabbed the gun from the thug, taking him by surprise. Finn shot all three thugs in the building square in the chest.</p><p>BANG! BANG! BANG!</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Outside, all of the officers stopped moving in but when they heard the gunshots, they abruptly stopped.</p><p>"Shots fired! Shots fired!</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>As Finn stood over the three motionless bodies, him and all of the hostages watched as one of the thugs used the last of his strength to press the button on his suicide vest, starting the thirty second countdown. The hostages immediately went into a frenzy, sprinting towards the door of the bank.</p><p>"All right, let's go, let's go, let's go." Finn exclaimed. The hostages made it out the door and started shouting to the policeman about the bomb. After a while, once all of the hostages made it out to where the cops were, there was a moment of pure quiet. Then, the door of the bank swung open once more and Finn walked outside, munching on a slice of pepperoni pizza from one of the pizzas he had brought in. Quinn stormed over to him.</p><p>"What the hell are you doing?!" She shouted. Finn finished his pizza slice and he dusted his hands against his trousers, before holding one out for Quinn to shake.</p><p>"Finn Hudson. We're gonna make a great team."</p><p>At that moment, the bomb went off and the blast sent Finn and Quinn flying backwards…</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"The man wants to die!" Quinn shouted to Kurt. They were back at the precinct and Quinn immediately ran to Captain Hummel's office to complain. "Which is fine, that's his business. But if it was up to me, I'd lock him in a padded white room! But that's not my area of expertise. What MY domain is is sustaining the life of one Lucy Quinn Fabray!"</p><p>Suddenly, Quinn's smart watch started beeping. She had started wearing it after her heart attack and it started beeping whenever her heart rate went too high. Kurt rolled his eyes. Quinn had always been extremely overdramatic.</p><p>"OK, calm down. That thing's gonna explode." Kurt said, pointing to the watch. "IA is investigating but he'll probably be cleared, since the shots were fired from the suspect's weapon."</p><p>"You're not seriously considering putting that man back in the field, are you?" Quinn yelled.</p><p>"It came from upstairs." Kurt argued. 'Upstairs' was where all of the chiefs were and if one of them was backing Finn, he was practically untouchable. "Someone's protecting this guy."</p><p>"Who?!" Quinn exclaimed. Kurt shrugged. Suddenly, there was a knock on the glass door of the office and Finn peaked his head in the doorway.</p><p>"We got a DOA body in Griffith Park. Want to give me a ride? I'm new to the area and I don't really know my way around." He said. Kurt smirked.</p><p>"Sure, Quinn can give you a ride." He said before looking at Quinn. She glared at him and sighed. She then turned to Finn.</p><p>"Is the DOA dead?" She asked. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Um… dead on arrival. Does it mean something different here?"</p><p>"I just want to make sure there's no one else left for you to kill or blow up."</p><p>"Just you and me." Finn winked. "Besides, I.A (Internal Affairs) confiscated my weapon. So if we gotta kill someone, it's on you, dude."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn and Finn hiked up to the top of Griffith Park, where they were met by a couple of uniformed officers, the forensics expert called Artie Abrams and the junior detective called Tina Cohen-Chang.</p><p>"Scorsese. Tell us what's going on?" Quinn said, walking up to Artie. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Oh, any relation?" Finn asked, referring to the famous director obviously.</p><p>"I went to film school, wrote a script, so these geniuses all call me Scorsese. Super creative." Artie explained.</p><p>"Well, walk us through it." Quinn said, pointing to the dead guy.</p><p>"Name is Ramon Alvarez. Gunshot wound to the right temple appears self-inflicted. Residue on his right hand consistent with the .22 pistol found by his side. Looks like suicide."</p><p>Putting on gloves, Finn squatted down next to the body and he pulled a chain out of the man's shirt. He instantly recognised it as a military dog tag from the U.S Navy. Finn had one just like it.</p><p>"He served." Finn commented.</p><p>"Yup. He was actually a SEAL. '06 though '11." Artie replied. "He also has scarring on his wrists. Might not have been his first attempt."</p><p>"Hmm…" Quinn said. "Okay. Well, I think we have a pretty clear picture of what happened. I'll go fill out some paperwork."</p><p>Quinn started to turn around and walk away but Finn didn't move.</p><p>"How'd he get here?" Finn asked. Quinn turned back around to face him. "No car, no bike, no bus stop." He continued.</p><p>"Maybe he walked." Quinn suggested. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"He's got silt on the bottom of his boots. If he walked, it would've come off. There's none of that around here." Finn remarked. He had gotten extremely good at reading people and situations from his time in the CIA and he didn't miss anything.</p><p>"Maybe he ubered." Quinn shrugged. Finn snorted.</p><p>"To kill himself? Come on, seems like a pain in the ass, don't you think? Wouldn't you just go bang at home?"</p><p>Quinn, who was getting frustrated at the rogue detective showing her up, scowled at him and decided to go for a cheap shot.</p><p>"I wouldn't know." She commented, sarcastically. Finn cocked his head and looked at Quinn.</p><p>"Well lucky you." He replied. He then turned back to Artie and the uniformed officers. "Take the body to the morgue. Push his autopsy to the front of the line."</p><p>Finn then took the dog tag from around Ramon's neck and put it in his pocket. Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Hey, what are you doing?" She snapped. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"This man served his country. I'm gonna give him a proper investigation…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The first course of action was for them to visit the deceased's house and speak to his wife. The woman wept as she held her husband's dog tag in her hand.</p><p>"We are very sorry about your loss, Mrs. Alvarez." Quinn said.</p><p>"He didn't do this." She snapped. "Do you understand me?"</p><p>"Ma'am, we're exploring all possibilities. That's why we're here." Finn said, gently. Quinn sighed and glared at him. She still strongly believed it was suicide.</p><p>"We noticed some scarring on your husband's wrists."</p><p>Mrs. Alvarez nodded.</p><p>"That was a long time ago. When he first got home from the war. One day, I came home early from work and I found him. In the tub. But then everything changed."</p><p>"How so?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"He found this new job, working security down at the port of L.A. He was exercising, he stopped taking his anti-anxiety medicine, Klonopin. I think he felt like a soldier again."</p><p>Finn, who was standing at the corner of the room, stepped out from the shadows. He had spent the past couple of minutes examining the house he was standing in. He couldn't help but notice all the boxes all over the floor.</p><p>"Mrs. Alvarez, were you guys going somewhere?"</p><p>She sighed.</p><p>"Yeah. Ramon wanted us to start over. He found us a big house in Arizona."</p><p>"When were you leaving?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Next week."</p><p>Quinn and Finn looked at each other, both thinking the same thought.</p><p>"OK, thank you for your time, Mrs. Alvarez." Quinn said, standing up. As Finn and Quinn started to walk towards the entrance of the house, Quinn noticed something in the living room, where the son was playing video games. She picked up a baseball mitt that was on the ground.</p><p>"Lefty, huh? This your dad's?" She asked. The young boy nodded. "You guys play?"</p><p>"We'd play catch sometimes. Always seemed to make him happy."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn and Finn shut the door of the house behind them and walked back to Quinn's car.</p><p>"Look, I certainly understand killing yourself once you've moved to Arizona, but seems a little aggressive to do it the week before, no?" He remarked. Quinn turned to him.</p><p>"If you were gonna kill yourself, how would you do it?" She asked. Finn thought for a moment.</p><p>"Pills sound nice, drift off, but then some idiot pumps your stomach, next thing you know, you wake up in a hospital you gotta show up for work the next day. Everyone knows. It's humiliating. Now, I've heard wonderful things about drowning…" At this point, Finn was cut off by Quinn raising a hand and shaking her head.</p><p>"No, no. If you were going to SHOOT yourself, how would you do it?"</p><p>Finn sighed and then pointed to Quinn's gun, which was connected to the holster on her hip.</p><p>"May I?" He asked. Quinn hesitated. "Come on, I'm not going to do it here. I promise."</p><p>Quinn took the gun from her holster and made a big deal of removing the magazine. Finn took the pistol in his hands and took a deep breath.</p><p>"Well, first I swing by Home Depot and get a polyethylene plastic sheet. Lay it down so I don't make a mess. Then, I'd take my final shot at Brad Pitt. Leave instructions for my interment and a check for $6500 for burial costs. Actually, things are more expensive here, I should look into that. Then close my eyes and shoot from the bottom, up. Blow my skull off, eliminate all doubt."</p><p>Quinn sighed and shook her head.</p><p>"My point was you'd use your dominant hand." She said, pointing to the gun in Finn's left hand. "So why would Alvarez shoot himself with his right hand if he was a lefty?"</p><p>"Maybe he didn't." Finn remarked. "Guy wants to get out of town in a week, he's either really excited to get somewhere…"</p><p>"Or he's trying to get away from someone." Quinn responded, finishing his sentence. "Come on."</p><p>"Where are we going?" Finn asked.</p><p>"To find out how a guy who works security can afford a big house in Arizona."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn's car screeched to a halt in front of the Port of L.A and the two detectives stepped out of the car. They were immediately stopped by two security guards.</p><p>"Woah, woah, woah! You can't park here." A guard said.</p><p>"Detective Fabray. LAPD. Tight security today?" She remarked. The officer raised his hands in apology.</p><p>"Sorry, we got the Grand Prix circuit in town. Been kind of a zoo around here. Daryl Hennicky. I run patrol for the docks." He said, shaking their hands.</p><p>"Wait, isn't that Customs' job?" Finn asked.</p><p>"We just babysit the containers till they process 'em." Daryl explained.</p><p>"And what did Ramon Alvarez do here?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Basic foot patrol." Daryl replied. "Didn't know him very well. He was a… good worker. Always showed up on time. His patrol was right over there. It's a warehouse belonging to the importer." He said, pointing to a warehouse to their left.</p><p>"You mind?" Finn asked, pointing to the building and walking towards it.</p><p>"Nah, go for it." Daryl replied.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn walked into the warehouse together. It was definitely a pretty shady place.</p><p>"Remember, we have nothing, no warrant and this is government property. We need to tip toe very carefully." Quinn reminded him. Finn nodded.</p><p>"You will find no man with a more delicate touch than me." He replied. Before they could take two steps into the warehouse, they were stopped by a man in a suit.</p><p>"Can I help you?" He asked them.</p><p>"Yeah, LAPD." Quinn replied. "I'm here to inform you that one of your co-workers, Mr. Ramon Alvarez, just passed away."</p><p>"He was a rent-a-cop. Not a co-worker. But I heard he had a young boy, so yes, it is a tragedy." he said. Finn wasn't listening though. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a man in a white tank top walking past. Because of his small top, Finn noticed something… the tattoos he had were ones only members of the Juarez Drug Cartel donned. He had a couple of run-ins with the cartel back in Texas and he knew that they were some seriously hard dudes.</p><p>"What about him?" Finn asked, pointing at the guy. "Is he a coworker?"</p><p>"He's an employee." The man in the suit replied. "Why?"</p><p>"I dig his ink." Finn replied. "Recognise it from Texas. Real big in the Juarez drug dealer set. You know, maybe I should go say hi."</p><p>"Go say hi!" Quinn encouraged him.</p><p>"I'm gonna go talk to him. Maybe we know some of the same people." Finn joked but as he walked, he heard the man in the suit calling him back.</p><p>"Hey, I haven't given police permission to question my employees!" He exclaimed. Quinn stopped him though.</p><p>"Hey, hey, hey. Hold on, chico." She said. "You don't want us coming back here with warrants and looking through all your cargo."</p><p>The man reluctantly sighed and nodded. Finn smirked and started running towards the maze of storage containers. He eventually saw the man a couple of paces ahead of him.</p><p>"Hey! Amigo!" Finn exclaimed. "Look, I want to talk to you about Ramon Alvarez. Hey, look, I know you didn't kill him; if you did, he wouldn't have a head, right?"</p><p>The man didn't respond. Finn sighed and switched to spanish.</p><p>"No habla inglés (<em>You don't speak English)</em>?¿Quién mató a Ramon Alvarez (<em>Who killed Ramon Alvarez)</em>?</p><p>Suddenly, the man grabbed a crowbar from beside him and swung at Finn. Finn ducked easily and grabbed the bar. He was about to hit him when suddenly, the sound of guns cocking echoed all around him.</p><p>"LET HIM GO! NOW!" They shouted.</p><p>"It's okay, guys. I'm a cop." He said. The 2 men didn't lower their guns. "Nothing?" Finn asked, surprised. "Look, I don't have a badge or a gun or anything, you know. Had disciplinary issues."</p><p>The hammer clicked on one of the guns and Finn sighed and let go of the man and raised his hands in surrender…</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Before anyone else could react, Finn threw the crowbar at one man and took down the other, disarming both of them. During the fight, the Juarez Cartel member took the opportunity to sprint away. Finn groaned and ran after him. He followed the man back towards the entrance, where Quinn and the man in the suit were talking. As Finn ran, he shouted to Quinn.</p><p>"Hey, Quinn? Bad guy! Let's go, let's go!" He shouted, pointing at the man ahead of him. Quinn immediately reacted, sprinting into her car and diving into the front seat. Finn slid across the hood and clambered into the passenger seat. They took off after the man, who had just gotten into a Red Corvette.</p><p>"Come on, faster!" Finn exclaimed as Quinn turned on the siren and increased her speed. "Go, go, go, go, go!"</p><p>"What did he do?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"I asked him about Alvarez. He took a swing at me."</p><p>Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Hardly incriminating, man. I've wanted to take swings at you!" She remarked. Quinn's watch suddenly started beeping again, indicating that her heart rate was over 170 bpm.</p><p>"Could you PLEASE go fa… are you okay?" Finn asked, looking over at Quinn who was panting for breath.</p><p>"Yeah, fine!" She yelled back. Suddenly, both cars swerved and crashed into a wall. Strangely, the wall was made of tyres so they went straight through. They were still on the road but this wasn't any ordinary road. The cars around them were driving insanely quickly.</p><p>"Where the hell are we?" Quinn shouted.</p><p>"I don't know but they're going a whole lot faster than we are." Finn remarked. That's when Quinn realised…</p><p>"This is the Grand Prix!" She exclaimed. "Finn, you mother…"</p><p>Before she could finish her sentence, the Corvette started speeding away so they started chasing it again. They quickly started to close the gap between them until it was just a couple of meters.</p><p>"There he is, come on. Get up. Get up close." He said. He tried to grab the steering wheel but Quinn slapped his hands away.</p><p>"What are you doing? Get your hand off the wheel! Are you…"</p><p>Suddenly, they pulled up beside the Corvette and they realised that the driver was holding a…</p><p>"Gun!" Finn shouted, ducking and pulling Quinn down too. Quinn rammed the side of the car, forcing the gun out of his hands. "Would you please get me closer?"</p><p>"Closer? What are you…"</p><p>Before Quinn could finish her sentence, Finn opened the window of the passenger seat and started climbing out.</p><p>"That's not smart! What are you doing?!" She shouted. Finn didn't answer. He quickly scaled to the roof of the car and at the perfect time, with reflexes like a cat, he leapt from the roof of Quinn's car to the roof of the Corvette. Quinn watched this with her eyes wide as marbles and her mouth agape. What the hell was wrong with this guy? From the roof, Finn sent fierce punches through the window at the driver unless he was unconscious. However, when he knocked the guy out, he realised that the car wasn't going to brake. He did the one thing he could do… he dived off the car and onto the hard asphalt, groaning in pain as he hit the track. The car didn't stop though. It drove straight into the tyre barricade of the race track, flipping over it and landing upside down. Quinn pulled up next to Finn, who was stumbling to his feet.</p><p>"Hey, you alright?" She asked.</p><p>"Yeah, I think so." Finn murmured in reply. He looked up and pointed forward. When Quinn followed his finger, she realised that the bad guy was out of his car and was limping away.</p><p>"Quinn, bad guy. Getting away." Finn said, grunting in pain as he stood up. Quinn whipped out her gun and cocked it.</p><p>"LAPD!" She shouted. "Put your hands in the…"</p><p>Before she could finish her sentence, a bus flew in from out of nowhere, bulldozing into the guy. Finn and Quinn both winced in pain.</p><p>"Huh." Finn said. Quinn scowled at him and when Finn saw his expression, he shrugged. "What? I didn't kill him."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"The Grand Prix is a disaster zone. Thousands of dollars worth of damages. Not to mention a bus driver I may have to charge with manslaughter. What the hell did this guy do?"</p><p>Finn and Quinn were standing in Captain Hummel's office and were getting yelled at for the fiasco that happened at the Grand Prix.</p><p>"He had a tattoo." Quinn replied before turning to Finn. "Tell him… tell him what the tattoo was."</p><p>"Well…" Finn said. "Uh, he had a skull tattoo on the side of his neck, which I associated with a cartel in Juarez."</p><p>"Right, so he questioned him and the guy fled so we pursued at a safe distance." Quinn said.</p><p>"And then he pulled a gun!" Finn exclaimed. The two of them continued talking over until Hummel said…</p><p>"Stop! Stop!" He shouted. "What were you two doing at the port in the first place?"</p><p>"That's where Ramon Alvarez worked. The DOA in Griffith Park." Finn responded. Captain Hummel raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"I thought that was a suicide." He said.</p><p>"Yeah, but he had silt on his shoe." Quinn said.</p><p>"Exactly, and he tried to shoot himself with his non-dominant hand." Finn chimed in.</p><p>"And he was a SEAL." Quinn added. Soon, the two detectives were talking over each other again.</p><p>"Stop! Enough!" Hummel shouted. "Dirt on his shoe, non-dominant hand and Arizona? That's what we have?"</p><p>"Well, when you say it like that, it doesn't sound like much." Finn remarked.</p><p>"Fair enough. I'll put someone else on this. Per your request, Fabray, starting tomorrow, both of you are reassigned."</p><p>With that, Hummel stormed out of the room. Quinn and Finn left the office shortly after, walking back into the precinct.</p><p>"Maybe it was for the best." Finn said.</p><p>"How's that?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"I mean, we would've made a terrible team."</p><p>"Hey, look, look." Quinn said, stopping Finn. "Nothing personal. I'm just at a place in my life where I don't want to be the cowgirl anymore."</p><p>"Whatever gets you through the night." Finn replied and he started to walk away.</p><p>"Hey, woah, woah, wait, and what… what does that mean?" She demanded. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Come on, we were both there." Finn said. "I saw you. You were scared. You don't want to die."</p><p>"No, I <em>don't</em> want to die." She agreed. "Unlike you, who tries to accomplish that every second of the day."</p><p>"Understand I am not trying to judge you. All right? I get it." He said, gently, before walking towards the elevator. Quinn was not finished though. She had to throw in one final insult.</p><p>"Something happened to you, man and you snapped. You want to kill yourself? Go home, put the little sheet down and get it done. But don't you dare judge me for wanting to stay alive."</p><p>Finn turned around to face Quinn once again.</p><p>"Okay, Quinn. I still think you shouldn't be out there, though. Look, there's plenty of good people in this world who aren't cops. Go be one of them."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"I've seen a lot of guys who are a little nuts before… first ones through the door. But this dude is in a class by himself! It's as if he's trying to die! And then he has the temerity to want to judge me."</p><p>Quinn was cooking dinner that night, complaining endlessly to Santana about Finn. Santana listened to her patiently and once Quinn was finally done, she spoke.</p><p>"Hey, Quinn?" She said.</p><p>"Yeah, what?"</p><p>"Calm down." Santana said. "You are the bravest person I know."</p><p>Suddenly, the door rang. Santana and Quinn both turned to Quinn's middle child - a 15 year old girl named Haley.</p><p>"Can you get that please?" Santana asked her niece. Haley was wearing headphones and was on her phone.</p><p>"Don't worry. I'll get it." Quinn said. She walked to the front door and opened it to see Finn standing there. "Can I help you?" She asked.</p><p>"So, uh… I was at home… uh… thinking about bullet entry wounds…" He started but was cut off.</p><p>"Sounds like a very pleasant evening." Quinn remarked. Finn ignored her.</p><p>"And I was flipping through the Alvarez file. Traces of gunpowder on his temple."</p><p>"That means he didn't have the gun pressed against his head." Quinn realised. Finn nodded.</p><p>"Seems like a weird way to kill yourself, huh?"</p><p>"Yeah, and?"</p><p>"So, anyway, um… you know, I was wondering, you know, maybe, you know, if you wanted to, we could swing by the… uh… coroner's office."</p><p>"You sure you don't want a cop for that?" Quinn snapped. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Look, maybe I was a little out of line before. All right, I get it. You're too old for…"</p><p>"Hey, hey, hey, no! I'm just as sharp as I've always been."</p><p>Suddenly, Santana walked towards the door.</p><p>"Quinn, who is it?" Santana called. Quinn turned around to face the house.</p><p>"Uh, it's no… noth… no one." Quinn stammered. "Just, um…"</p><p>Santana opened the door a bit more and saw Finn standing on the front porch.</p><p>"Hi. Finn Hudson. The guy that almost got your husband killed." Finn said, politely shaking Santana's hand. "I'm sure you've heard a lot about me."</p><p>"Not a word." Santana replied. "We're about to have dinner. Would you like to come in, Finn Hudson?"</p><p>Quinn glared at her friend.</p><p>"He can't…" Quinn said immediately. Finn nodded.</p><p>"Yeah, and I… I ate like a week ago, so, you know, I'm fine. I mean, it smells great, but…"</p><p>"Tastes even better." Santana said as she led Finn inside the house. Finn smirked as Quinn as he walked into the house and she sighed and rolled her eyes.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn, Quinn, Santana and Quinn's two older kids (Haley, 15, and Luke, 17) sat and ate dinner at the dining table. Santana and the two children were dying to ask Finn questions but held back. Eventually, Luke broke the silence.</p><p>"My mom says you were in the war. See any action?" He asked, eagerly. Haley scoffed at her brother.</p><p>"Gosh, you are such a nerd." She said, rolling her eyes.</p><p>"Yeah, a little." Finn said, quietly.</p><p>"You know, I'm thinking about enlisting, too."</p><p>"No, you're not." Quinn snapped.</p><p>"I want real-life experience. What am I gonna learn at Princeton that I couldn't learn from the Internet?"</p><p>"What it feels like to touch a live girl." Haley remarked. Quinn chuckled.</p><p>"I think you should enlist. Hell, I think there should be a draft." Finn commented. Quinn and Santana looked at each other, nervously. "But I suppose it all depends on the life experience you're after. If you want to see your best friend's head get blown up, it's ideal. But if you're just trying to piss off your mom? Hitchhiking through Thailand might be a little better."</p><p>"See, Auntie Santana, that's exactly what I'm talking about. Experience" Haley said. Santana shook her head, furiously.</p><p>"No, stop, we're not talking about that right now." Santana said.</p><p>"What?" Quinn asked. "What's going on? I don't like being out of the loop. What's happening?"</p><p>"I had a teeny bit of weed and now mom is losing her s…"</p><p>"Woah, watch it!" Santana warned her.</p><p>"Stuff." Haley finished.</p><p>"WHAT?!" Quinn shouted.</p><p>"You know, I'm really impressed with the weed out here. I mean, it's incredible, you know? I mean, as far as I can tell, it's really the only perk to living in California."</p><p>Everyone was silent. Finn then realised what he had just said.</p><p>"I have massive, you know, psychological issues. Of course, I would never suggest that for a child. What I would suggest though is maybe your old lady takes a little hit of the tree. You know what I mean? Little blonde Jane Lynch gets loose."</p><p>Everyone at the table started laughing. Well, everyone but Quinn. Quinn glared at them.</p><p>"That's funny, huh? I like being tight. It keeps me alive." She said.</p><p>"Well, we can tell." Finn remarked.</p><p>"So, Finn, do you have any kids?" Santana asked. Finn's smile disappeared.</p><p>"Uh… no. Um… wasn't really in the cards."</p><p>"But you're married?" She asked, pointing to the wedding band on Finn's finger.</p><p>"Not anymore." He replied.</p><p>"Imagine that. Let me guess… you had an affair with your gun?" Quinn joked and she started laughing. No one else did though.</p><p>"She… she passed away." Finn explained.</p><p>"I'm so sorry, Finn." Santana said.</p><p>"Eh, it's life right? Never ceases to surprise."</p><p>Suddenly, crying rang out from upstairs.</p><p>"It's the baby." Quinn said. "I'll go get her…"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Quinn sat in the nursery, playing with her 6 month old baby girl, Alex when Finn walked into the room and stood in the doorway and watched. It was times like those that made him think about his past and what could have been. At this point, if there wasn't an accident while he gone, he could've been the one with the baby. Rachel was 9 months pregnant when she died. In fact, she had just gone into labor on the last voicemail Finn had gotten but she never made it to the hospital before having the aneurysm.</p><p>"Nice family you've got." Finn commented.</p><p>"Yeah, they keep us on our toes." Quinn replied. "And up all night."</p><p>"Yeah, I noticed the slight…"</p><p>"Slight age difference?" Quinn cut in. Finn nodded. There was a 15 year age gap between Haley and Alex. "Yeah. It wasn't part of the plan. I was 42, my ex was 38. The kids were out. Nine months later, this one comes out. And then I have a heart attack in the delivery room."</p><p>Finn's eyes widened slightly.</p><p>"You were in the right place." He remarked. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"Anywhere else, they say I wouldn't have made it."</p><p>Finn nodded.</p><p>"Um… if you don't mind my asking, what happened to your husband? You're not wearing a wedding ring."</p><p>"Well, about a month after Alex was born, I found out about his side-piece. I had always kind of known and our marriage had always been slightly toxic - married young and all that. Anyways, a month later, we were divorced and Santana moved in."</p><p>"I'm so sorry." Finn said.</p><p>"I'm sorry about your wife." Quinn replied. "I didn't know."</p><p>"I know. I just wanted to embarrass you a little." Finn said, the ghost of a smile on his lips.</p><p>"Yeah, well for the future, I do a pretty good job of that myself." Quinn laughed.</p><p>"She was a good one." Finn murmured, quietly. "Gave me something to live for, you know? All those rough days in the Navy, I would just call her at the end of the day and everything would suddenly be okay."</p><p>Quinn didn't know what to say. She stood up and held Alex.</p><p>"Have you ever held one of these before?" She asked, about to hand Finn the baby.</p><p>"Oh no, I haven't washed my hands in a long time." He said. Quinn rolled her eyes and handed Finn the baby. She started to walk to the door of the room when Finn stopped her.</p><p>"Where are you going?" Finn asked.</p><p>"To get my keys." Quinn replied. "The case isn't being reassigned till tomorrow. That means we got tonight to solve it."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"So, did you find anything unusual?" Finn asked Artie. They were in the morgue and Artie had just pulled out the body from one of the slabs.</p><p>"A few things." He replied. He pointed at the man's temple. "See that? Notes of stippling or gunpowder around the entry wound suggests the gun wasn't directly against his head when it was fired."</p><p>"Have you ever seen a suicide like that?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Nope. Also, the tox reports said he had 40 milligrams of Klonopin in his system. Enough to kill him if the bullet didn't get there first."</p><p>"Didn't his wife say he was off that drug?" Quinn asked Finn.</p><p>"So someone had to know the meds he was on, so it didn't look like he'd been doped." Finn pointed out. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"I'll check his medical records."</p><p>"All right, I'm gonna go talk to his wife." Finn said. He started to make his way towards the door but stopped when he heard himself being called back.</p><p>"Hey, Finn?" Quinn said. Finn turned around to face her.</p><p>"Yeah?"</p><p>"We would've made a terrible team." She smirked. Finn chuckled.</p><p>"Oh, yeah. Worst."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn got out of his beat-up pickup truck and knocked on Mrs. Alvarez's door. The door opened moments later and Mrs. Alvarez peeked her head out the door.</p><p>"Yes?" She asked.</p><p>"Mrs. Alvarez. Detective Hudson. Quick question. Who would've known what medications your husb…?"</p><p>"You have to leave." She snapped. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Yes, ma'am, I understand it's late. Is there a time…?"</p><p>"Just go!" She yelled. "Please!"</p><p>She slammed the door in his face and turned off the porch light. Finn immediately got the feeling that there was something sinister going on. He quickly tiptoed around the side of the house and easily broke in through an unlocked window. He prowled through the house and saw Mrs. Alvarez running around. He walked over to her and placed a hand over her both. Immediately, she started kicking.</p><p>"Shhhhh" Finn whispered. "You're being watched, aren't you?"</p><p>Mrs. Alvarez relaxed slightly and nodded.</p><p>"What happened?" He murmured.</p><p>"They took my son." She sobbed. Finn's eyes widened. The two of them sat down together at the corner of the room, away from any windows.</p><p>"Tell me what happened." He said.</p><p>"Oscar never came home from school today. I got a call. They said that… they said that they had him."</p><p>Her voice trailed off but Finn knew she wasn't finished.</p><p>"And what, Mrs. Alvarez?"</p><p>"If I ever wanted to see him alive again, I would give back what Ramon stole."</p><p>"What did he steal?"</p><p>"They said drugs. Heroin. But I've never seen drugs in this house. Ramon never got high. I searched everywhere. But… I don't know where it is."</p><p>"Thank you." Finn whispered. "I'm gonna bring your boy home…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn was in his trailer that night, preparing for the mission. He had various guns lying all over the floor and the Alvarez file strewn all over the table. Suddenly, the door of the trailer opened and Finn immediately had his pistol cocked and ready to fire. It was just Quinn though.</p><p>"Woah! Easy, kemosabe. I come in peace." She said. She looked around the trailer. "Nice place you've got here."</p><p>"Thank you."</p><p>"Did you know that your house is illegally parked?"</p><p>"So why don't you write me a parking ticket?"</p><p>Quinn then noticed all of the weapons lying around and she raised her eyebrows.</p><p>"What's going on here, Hudson?"</p><p>"Nothing. A little weapons spring cleaning." He replied. Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Okay. So we're back to doing that bit where we don't tell each other things, right? Well I was raised that when you come to someone's house, no matter how disgusting it is, you bring something. Look who I found in Alvarez's military records." She said, handing Finn a document. His eyes widened. It was Daryl.</p><p>"Alvarez's boss from the post." Finn murmured.</p><p>"And his commanding officer in Iraq."</p><p>"He said they barely knew one another."</p><p>"Well, I guess he lied. So I'm gonna ask you again, what the hell is going on here, Finn?"</p><p>"Someone kidnapped Alvarez's kid. They told the wife that if she doesn't return the heroin that she stole, they're gonna kill the kid."</p><p>"Heroin? Okay, that explains why he wanted to get the hell out of town. So who has the drugs?"</p><p>Realisation dawned on them at the same time.</p><p>"Hennicky has to know they're smuggling drugs down at the port." Finn started.</p><p>"Uh huh... So he hires his boy, Alvarez. Knows he's fallen on hard times, could use the dough, so convinces him to steal them." Quinn continued.</p><p>"Then Hennicky offs Alvarez. Makes it look a suicide. Drug dealers still think that Alvarez has their stuff and the cops think he offed himself. Perfect crime."</p><p>"Uh huh. So what's the plan?" Quinn asked. Finn smirked.</p><p>"I go down there and talk to 'em." Finn replied. "Tell 'em I want the kid back."</p><p>"Okay, then I'm going with you." Quinn said, decisively. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Uh… no, no, no, no."</p><p>"Yes, yes, yes." She snapped in reply. Finn groaned.</p><p>"Look, this is the kind of thing I'd prefer to do alone. You understand?"</p><p>Quinn didn't respond. Finn sighed. He knew what he had to do.</p><p>"Alright. But you can't go running around with that piddly little peashooter you got there. So you want the 870 or you want the SIG? You gotta pick one of them."</p><p>Then, before Quinn could respond, Finn grabbed Quinn's wrist and handcuffed her to his trailer.</p><p>"HEY! Get these damn handcuffs off me!" She shouted.</p><p>"Um… no. I'm not gonna do that." He responded. "Look, there is cold beer in the fridge, but… yeah, you can't reach that. Uh… and I gotta take your car. Sorry."</p><p>As Finn started to make his way out the door, he heard the familiar click of a gun. Quinn pointed her pistol at the back of his head and yet Finn didn't even bother turning around.</p><p>"FINN!" She shouted.</p><p>"Look, if you're not gonna do it, I gotta go." He said. He waited a couple of moments. "You're a good woman, Quinn. And a good cop. You take care of that family of yours, okay?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn whistled the theme to the Flintsones as he walked into the warehouse for the second time in 48 hours. Immediately, 4 machine guns cocked on him and the man in the suit stood behind them. They were all on high alert as Finn was holding his own weapon aloft.</p><p>"Can I help you, officer?" The man asked.</p><p>"Yeah, I'm here for the kid." Finn said.</p><p>"What kid?"</p><p>"Ramon Alvarez's son. Unless you've got other kidnapped children here, in which case, I'll take them as well." He joked. "Look, I get it. You took the kid because you thought that his dad stole your heroin, which he did. Which I could care less about all this. My only concern is the 12 year old boy. So if you let me walk out of here with him, none of this ever happened."</p><p>They didn't respond. Finn rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Or we can explore option number 2." He suggested.</p><p>"Which is?" The man asked, smirking at him.</p><p>"I kill as many of you as I can before you take me out. You've upped your profile from small-time dealer to cop killer. You spend the rest of your life in jail, or on the run, or most likely dead. I'm not saying it's a great option, but people do like choices."</p><p>The man chuckled and Finn laughed right back.</p><p>"Why don't you put your weapon down and I'll show you the kid."</p><p>Finn held the weapon in his hands and stroked it gently.</p><p>"God, I love this weapon." He murmured. "All right." He announced, putting the gun on the ground. "Your turn."</p><p>The man gestured to one of his henchmen, who dragged the young boy out into the open. Finn smiled at him.</p><p>"Hey, buddy. You okay?"</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>"All right. We're gonna get you home, okay?"</p><p>"Hold it!" The man said. "If you know where my product is, go get it right now."</p><p>Finn laughed.</p><p>"Um… no." Finn replied. Before the men could react, Quinn came flying through a window in Finn's pickup truck, spraying bullets wildly. She caused a good enough distraction that Finn was able to pick his gun up and shoot all of the henchmen. After they were all dead, Finn and Quinn relaxed slightly. The main man was still out there though; he had gotten away during the firefight.</p><p>"Quinn!" Finn chuckled. "What are you doing here?"</p><p>She held out her hand, revealing the handcuffs.</p><p>"Came to get these damn cuffs off me."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The two of them and the young boy walked out of the warehouse together.</p><p>"Put that BOLO out on Hennicky." Finn said. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"How am I supposed to explain all of this?" She asked. Both of them laughed.</p><p>"You could call it in anonymously and we could run." Finn suggested.</p><p>"Yeah, right." Quinn replied. Suddenly, a shot rang out and Finn felt a searing pain in his shoulder. Hennicky was on the roof with a sniper rifle! The three of them dived for cover and were temporarily shielded from him. Finn had dropped his gun in the process.</p><p>"Ah! You can cancel the BOLO on Hennicky." He muttered.</p><p>"Where is he?" Quinn asked, peering out from her cover point.</p><p>"Come out and I let the kid live!" Hennicky shouted, before a bullet ricocheted right next to them.</p><p>"GIVE US A SECOND!" Finn bellowed. "Oscar, don't move!" He shouted to the young boy.</p><p>"No more warnings! Now!" Hennicky shouted. Quinn checked her gun and she groaned.</p><p>"Finn, I only have one shot." She grumbled. Finn nodded.</p><p>"Okay. Here's what we're gonna do." He said. "I walk out. When I do, he shoots me. That gives up his position. Then you take him out. Okay?"</p><p>Finn was about to stand up but Quinn pulled him back down roughly.</p><p>"Wait! Wait! Wait! Are you insane?! He'll kill you!"</p><p>Finn nodded and grinned wildly.</p><p>"Yeah. And then you kill him." He replied.</p><p>"No. Don't do this." She murmured. "Don't do this."</p><p>"I miss my girl." Finn murmured. "It's okay. Just don't miss."</p><p>With that, Finn stood up and exposed himself to Hennicky. He walked to the middle of the parking lot. Hennicky watched through his sniper scope as Finn called for him to let the kid go. Taking a deep breath, Quinn peered around the container she was hiding behind, her gun in her hands. As Hennicky was just to pull the trigger, Quinn suddenly realised something. A new plan. She quickly turned her gun downwards and shot Finn in the foot!</p><p>He cried out in pain and fell on the ground, effectively ducking the bullet that Hennicky had just fired. Finn didn't waste the opportunity. He grabbed his gun and quickly fired a round into Hennicky's chest. Hennicky fell and hit the ground with a dull THUD.</p><p>"Are you okay?" Quinn said, running over to him. Finn groaned.</p><p>"Ow! No! I can't believe you shot me!"</p><p>"Hell, I can't believe it took me so long." Quinn replied.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Just as Quinn was about to finally sleep that night, she heard the doorbell ring. She grumbled and got out of bed. She opened the door and saw Finn.</p><p>"What? I was just about to sleep!" She snapped.</p><p>"Look, I, uh… I never thanked you for saving my life, although I'm not sure you meant to shoot me in the foot." He joked, handing Quinn a bottle of wine. She smiled at him.</p><p>"Yeah, well, maybe I'll get another shot at it. And I'll see you tomorrow, all right?"</p><p>"All right." Finn replied, and he started to walk away.</p><p>"Hey!"</p><p>"Yeah?"</p><p>"I will see you tomorrow, right? You're not gonna go home and, you know…"</p><p>Finn took a deep breath and shook his head.</p><p>"No."</p><p>"But you want to. For real."</p><p>Finn turned and walked back to her.</p><p>"Yeah. I do. But if it makes you feel any better, I can't do it myself."</p><p>"And why's that?"</p><p>Finn looked up at Quinn.</p><p>"Because she'd be ashamed of me." He replied. "Crazy, huh?"</p><p>Quinn smiled faintly.</p><p>"That's probably the least crazy thing about you." She replied. Suddenly, the door opened wider and Santana stepped out onto the porch.</p><p>"Finn! What are you doing out here?" She asked.</p><p>"Oh, he just dropped this off and then he was leaving." Quinn explained.</p><p>"Well, did you invite him in?" She asked.</p><p>"No, 'cause he's…" Quinn started but was cut off.</p><p>"No, she did not. Which is quite rude, actually. I'm standing out here; I'm clearly injured. You know, your sister is the one that shot me and she's just gonna leave me standing out here in the cold." He smirked. Santana laughed.</p><p>"Get in here!" She exclaimed. Finn winked at Quinn as he walked past her.</p><p>"I hope I'm not intruding." He said.</p><p>"Not at all." Santana laughed. Quinn groaned as she followed her sister and her partner into the house.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A large crowd was gathering around on Long Beach. There was a naked, dead body lying in the sand.</p><p>"Damn." The coast guard said as he pushed through the crowd and saw the body. He turned on his walkie talkie. "We got a dead body on the beach. Washed up near lifeguard tower 17."</p><p>The coast guard unfurled his baton and gently poked the body.</p><p>"OW!" The body exclaimed. Everyone gasped and jumped back. Stumbling to his feet, the man groaned at the sunlight as he took in his surroundings. He had gotten black out drunk the day before so he didn't remember passing out on the beach in the first place. When the man saw the coastguard, he smiled at him.</p><p>"Oh, hey, man. Um… I live just right up the beach there. I must have gotten lost" He said, pointing at a trailer in the distance. He started to get up but was stopped by the coast guard.</p><p>"Stay right here! This is indecent exposure. I need to call this in!" The guard shouted. Finn saluted the man.</p><p>"Detective Finn Hudson, at your service."</p><p>After confirmation from the people on the other side of his walkie talkie, the guard odded.</p><p>"You need to cover yourself up, detective."</p><p>Finn looked down and realised he was naked.</p><p>"You make a valid point, officer. The sun can be a bitch."</p><p>With that, he took an overlarge sunhat from one of the gawking tourists and rather than covering up his genitals, he put it on his head and walked away.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Would you go put some damn clothes on?!" Quinn exclaimed to her daughter, Haley. She had come down wearing a sleeveless shirt and booty shorts.</p><p>"I'm dressed." Haley replied, twirling around. Quinn shook her head furiously.</p><p>"Uh-uh-uh, you take your narrow butt upstairs and put something on that covers it. We're having COMPANY tonight."</p><p>"It's just Finn. He'll be dressed worse than me."</p><p>"It's called pants. Go put some on." Santana said, walking into the room. At that moment, Luke tried to grab a piece of the barbequed ribs his mom was making for dinner but she slapped his hand away.</p><p>"Don't you touch those ribs! They're relaxing!" Quinn snapped.</p><p>"I wish we could say the same about you, Quinn." Santana remarked. "It's been three weeks you've been off work, and you haven't really taken advantage of the downtime."</p><p>"Well, I'm back at work tomorrow, assuming we get cleared for the shootings." Quinn replied.</p><p>"What does Kurt think?" Santana asked.</p><p>"Should be fine. What was I supposed to do? My partner handcuffs me to his trailer and then I drive a truck through the wall of…"</p><p>"You didn't tell me that part." Santana cut in. Quinn furrowed her eyebrows.</p><p>"What part?"</p><p>"The handcuff you to his trailer part."</p><p>Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Oh, I meant he handcuffed the <em>suspect…"</em></p><p>"Handcuffed you to his trailer." Santana stated. Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Yes, Counselor."</p><p>Santana sighed.</p><p>"Well… just make sure he understands our one rule… at the end of every shift, you come back to us."</p><p>"I will make that crystal clear, m'lady."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn hurried around his trailer, tucking in his shirt and topping up a half-filled bottle of wine. He was going to Quinn's place for dinner that evening. Despite everything, they decided to stay as partners, provided the LAPD allowed them to. As Finn made it out the door, he turned and saw the framed picture of Rachel on his table. He gently kissed his fingers and placed them on the picture.</p><p>"Love you, babe." He whispered, before walking out the door. Even just seeing a picture of her made his heart ache. He missed her SO much. She was his whole life for 20 years - from age 16 until they were 36 - and to have her ripped so cruelly off the face of the earth was excruciating. Finn got into his car and started driving to Quinn's house when his phone started ringing. He answered it.</p><p>"Relax, Fabray. I'm on my way, dude." He said.</p><p>"Hey, sugar!" A strong Texan accent exclaimed into the phone. It definitely wasn't Quinn. "It's Debbie Sue, your realtor down in El Paso. I have been trying to reach you."</p><p>"Um, sorry, yeah. Uh, been a busy week." Finn replied.</p><p>"Well, great news! The most darling young couple just made an offer on your house. What do you want me to do, sugar?"</p><p>The phone slipped from his hand and fell on the floor of the car. He was ripped into a flashback of the day him and Rachel bought the house…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"<em>Babe! We did it! We bought a house!" Rachel exclaimed, leaping into his arms and kissing him fiercely. Finn, dressed in his formal Navy uniform, laughed. Rachel had just finished college and Law School in New York was about to start at a firm in their hometown of El Paso. Meanwhile, Finn had just finished two deployments within the ranks of the Navy SEALs and he had been hand-chosen to begin training for the most elite force in the military - SEAL Team 6 or DEVGRU. However, he had a month off first. Finn had just finished his 7th mission in Iraq and he had seen horrific, traumatic, disgusting things while he was there. He watched his best friend's head get blown off by a landmine. But when he was with Rachel, all of his troubles suddenly disappeared.</em></p><p>"<em>Yeah, we did! Are we officially adults now?" He asked.</em></p><p>"<em>I mean, I am. You are still a little kid." Rachel giggled. Finn rolled his eyes and kissed her. "You know, we made good time signing the papers of the house. We have around an hour to kill before your parents come." She remarked, nibbling his ear seductively. Finn didn't have to be told twice. Using his military strength, he scooped her up in his arms and jogged through the house to the bedroom. She squealed in delight.</em></p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn tore himself away from the flashback and picked up the phone again. He put it to his ear.</p><p>"Mr. Hudson, y'all still there?" The realtor asked.</p><p>"Sell it." Finn snapped, before hanging up the phone. He took an early exit and parked in front of a bar. The throbbing pain in his heart was unbearable and the only thing that could numb the pain was booze. Finn sat at the bar, drinking shot after shot. After he was finally done drinking, he turned to leave but he bumped into a massive guy, causing the man to spill his beer. The man was obviously pissed and he dragged a blackout drunk Finn out the bar. He was quickly joined by a whole gang, who all began kicking the crap out of him. Finn chuckled and giggled maniacally as the gang beat him up. Every blow he endured put him one step closer to seeing Rachel again, and it gave him physical pain to distract himself from the emotional torture he was always feeling.</p><p>Eventually, the gang finally had enough and they got on their bikes and drove away, leaving Finn semi-conscious and bleeding from various gashes all over his body.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Is he insane? Does he have any idea how hard I worked on these ribs?" Quinn shouted. It was 9 pm, an hour after the agreed upon time and Finn still hadn't shown.</p><p>"I don't think he's coming, mom." Luke remarked. Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Very astute. Now I see why you're going to Princeton." She retorted.</p><p>"Q, stop." Santana laughed. "Now, don't you think you should call him? Make sure he's okay."</p><p>"Oh, he better not be okay!" Quinn yelled, but she took her phone out and dialled his number anyways. Finn, who was starting to fade from consciousness, was brought back with a jolt when his phone rang. He groaned in pain as he took his phone out of his pocket and answered the call.</p><p>"Hello?" He groaned, coughing and wheezing in pain.</p><p>"Three hours late! No phone call? No excuses? You know what? For as long as you are breathing, I don't want to hear it. And I also want you to know that I am hurt!"</p><p>Finn didn't respond. He could barely talk through the pain. Quinn didn't know that though as she wasn't video calling him so she misinterpreted it badly.</p><p>"Oh, you don't have nothing to say for yourself?" She snapped. Finn used his final strength to utter 5 words...</p><p>"I miss you too, Quinn."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next morning, Finn and Quinn were sitting outside Kurt's office, and Finn had large shades over his eyes. Quinn just assumed he was hungover, and that was why he didn't come to dinner the night before.</p><p>"I invited you into my home to break bread with my family! I spent three days kneading and working those ribs till they fall off the bone. No call. No apology. You're just sitting there with your shades on like you're Johnny fucking Depp! Man, take the damn shades off!"</p><p>Finn sighed and took the shades off, revealing two black eyes and a large gash under his left eye.</p><p>"Man, put the damn shades back on." Quinn snapped as she saw the state of him. Suddenly, the door to Kurt's office swung open.</p><p>"Crockett and Tubbs! Get in here!" He exclaimed. The two detectives stood up and walked into the office, sitting in the two chairs opposite their captain. Kurt wrote down a number on the board next to him… <strong>1,483,955</strong></p><p>"Do either of you have any idea what this number is?" Kurt asked.</p><p>"Um… the number of words in the Book of Genesis." Finn guessed.</p><p>"Number of cats in your apartment." Quinn suggested.</p><p>"Not cats. Pies." Finn added.</p><p>"It was rhetorical!" Kurt shouted. "It's the amount of money you two lunatics cost the city working together for three days! Despite that staggering amount of financial exposure, the city attorney hasn't demanded that I fire your asses. So you know what we're gonna do? We're gonna ease you back into it. We have a 415 up in Hollywood Hills."</p><p>"Cool. What is that? Double homicide?" Finn asked.</p><p>"I think it's a Jewelry heist." Quinn remarked.</p><p>"It's a noise complaint." Kurt replied. Finn and Quinn raised their eyebrows.</p><p>"What? I've been robbery/homicide longer than you." Quinn started.</p><p>"And if you want to stay, you're gonna have to show the bosses that number isn't gonna go up."</p><p>"Consider it done, Cap." Finn responded before turning to Quinn. "Let's go!"</p><p>Finn was first out the door but Quinn lingered to talk to Kurt.</p><p>"Hey, Kurt, come on. Does this guy really feel ready?" She asked.</p><p>"No, but it's not my call." Kurt replied. "I don't get it either. Guy must have friends in powerful places."</p><p>"Trust me, that guy has no friends!" Quinn spat.</p><p>"Well, now he has you." Kurt responded. Quinn started to walk out the door when Kurt stopped her. "And Fabray, remind your partner that the job is to STOP a noise complaint, not cause one!"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Up in Hollywood Hills, there was a massive party going on at one of the mansions. There were hundreds of people and it was insanely boisterous, to the extent that one of the neighbors called the police.</p><p>However, all of the action was going on in the house next door. 5 large men stood around as a sixth opened his briefcase, revealing a unique, next-gen machine gun.</p><p>"Damn, that's some next-gen hardware!" One of the men exclaimed. "How many can I have?"</p><p>"As many as you need."</p><p>The boss wasn't listening to the conversation though. He was too busy looking out the window as he had just seen a familiar face. He took a picture and sent it to his boss.</p><p>
  <strong>Look who I found…</strong>
</p><p>The boss responded moments later.</p><p>
  <strong>Take care of it…</strong>
</p><p>The man nodded to himself. He walked back into the house, grabbed one of the guns and walked out onto the balcony. He cocked his weapon and aimed…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Hey, you know what? Forget about dinner?" Quinn said as she slammed her car door shut. The two of them had just arrived at the mansion in Hollywood Hills and they definitely knew which house was the party location but first, they needed to visit the house that called the noise complaint. "Okay? We don't need a personal relationship. Let's keep it professional. But while we're on the job, we got to work together like surf and turf."</p><p>"Cool, I'm turf." Finn replied.</p><p>"No, you're surf. You live on the beach, butt naked."</p><p>"This is non-negotiable, Quinn."</p><p>Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Fine. Pineapple and ham."</p><p>Finn shuddered.</p><p>"That's gross. I don't want to be either."</p><p>"Chips and Salsa." She suggested. Finn cocked his head.</p><p>"You know? I can roll with that." He said.</p><p>"Okay. I'm spicy salsa with the tomatoes blended nicely on the side." Quinn said. Finn scoffed.</p><p>"Nah, you'd be mild and chunky at best."</p><p>"You know, I'm trying to like you." Quinn snapped. Finally, they made it to the house who raised the noise complaint…</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hello, ma'am. We are responding to a noise complaint." Quinn said, shaking the woman's hand. The woman nodded.</p><p>"They have been partying all day. The music and drugs… I smell reefer."</p><p>"Actually, I do detect something." Finn remarked, before turning to Quinn. "Do you smell that?"</p><p>Quinn grinned.</p><p>"Yeah, I do. Is that the faint aroma of freshly baked coffee cake?"</p><p>The lady laughed.</p><p>"Yes, it is. Would you two care for a piece?"</p><p>"Oh, I'd have hate but…"</p><p>Before Finn could answer, the sound of automatic machine gunfire rang through the air, followed by a massive panic. Finn and Quinn immediately sprinted towards the mansion, which was getting sprayed by one shooter. As Quinn ran towards the entrance, Finn scaled the 15 feet fence. He made it to a group of young adults, who were screaming and hiding behind a couple of trees.</p><p>"Hey. Where's our shooter?" He asked. One of them pointed left and Finn nodded and followed the direction. Meanwhile, on the ground floor, the shooter stormed towards the street and over to a propane truck.</p><p>"Get out of the truck!" He yelled at the driver, holding a gun to the man's head. Trembling, the driver clambered out and the criminal got in. Finn sprinted out of the mansion and ran towards it. The truck was getting away and he knew it, before he saw a motorcycle lying at the side of the road. He leapt onto it and revved the engine. He tore towards the truck as Quinn got into her car and followed. Finn soon caught up with the truck, weaving and dodging through cars. As Finn approached the truck, he whipped out his gun. When he pulled up to the truck, he was met by intense machine gun fire. Finn swerved and ducked from the bullets.</p><p>Meanwhile, in Quinn's car, she was a couple of meters behind Finn and the truck. Suddenly, her phone started ringing. It was Santana. Quinn picked up the phone.</p><p>"Hey, Santana." Quinn shouted as she drove.</p><p>"Hey, Quinn. Find me any new clients?" She asked. Santana was a defence attorney.</p><p>"I'm working on it, Counselor. Hey, can I call you back? I'm kind of in the middle of something."</p><p>"Sure. Look, I was just thinking about Finn. Maybe we should give him another chance tonight at dinner."</p><p>"Meanwhile, Finn had just realised that he was rambling towards construction. There was a ramp right before the construction area so Finn flew up it, landing on the hook of a crane and grabbing onto it for dear life. Quinn was now a block in front of the propane truck so she parked her car and got out, facing the truck with her gun raised. She watched in astonishment as the events went down, and she watched as the unmanned motorcycle skidded onto the underside of the propane truck.</p><p>"Uh, can we put a pin in bringing him around the kids for now?" Quinn shouted into the phone. "I gotta jump."</p><p>The truck was barreling towards her and Finn was gently gliding towards the ground on the rope of the crane.</p><p>"Take the shot, Fabray!" Finn shouted. Quinn's mind raced. She debated the many consequences of firing a bullet and she took too long. She was forced to dive onto the sidewalk and the truck bulldozed through her car and kept on driving. Finn ran over to her.</p><p>"Hey, what are you doing? Why didn't you take the shot?" Finn complained.</p><p>"Because he's driving a PROPANE truck. I didn't want any collateral damage."</p><p>Finn glared at her.</p><p>"And you want to be spicy salsa." He remarked, annoyed. Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Well, how far do you think he's gonna get in the middle of Hollywood?"</p><p>Suddenly, there was a colossal explosion as the vehicle burst into flames. Finn looked at Quinn.</p><p>"I'd say about two blocks."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The rest of the police force had now arrived at the mansion, and they were examining the body that was shot by the murderer.</p><p>"So, Artie, what do you think?" Quinn asked him.</p><p>"A little bougie of a pad for my taste." Artie remarked. "I prefer the Bird Streets or the views from up on Mulholland."</p><p>Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"You make it up this way much?"</p><p>"Everyone dies, Fabray. Even you."</p><p>"Let me guess… death by gunshot wounds." Finn remarked, pointing at the various holes in the walls.</p><p>"Very perceptive, Tango. Or are you Cash? I always get you guys confused. " Artie asked. Detective Cohen-Chang - Quinn's mentee - walked up to them.</p><p>"Our vic's name is Ronald Dawson. Up-and-coming light heavyweight. He was renting this place. My guess: he played at being hard and pissed off some actually hard-playing dudes who took him out. He was the primary target."</p><p>"Good work, Tina. This is my protege." Quinn informed Finn. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Or alternate theory: he wasn't the target." Finn remarked. When nobody said anything, Finn sighed and stood up. "All right, let's see what we got."</p><p>Finn started walking around the house, pointing out various things.</p><p>"Look at all the bullet holes around here." He commented. "Well, our vic wasn't exactly keeping a low profile. All right? So why spray the place?"</p><p>Quinn, who was holding a phone, walked over to Finn.</p><p>"Look at this. Our party girl over there was taking selfies. Here she is in the pool, obviously looking for her top. Now, check out the cocktail waitress in the background."</p><p>Quinn zoomed in on a waitress, who was already running away from the screen.</p><p>"She's running before the gunshots." Finn pointed out. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"Which means she saw the shooter." Quinn continued.</p><p>"Or the shooter saw her." Finn added. "Maybe she's the target."</p><p>Quinn, who had just walked into the garden, turned around to the rest of the group.</p><p>"What kind of shoes was the waitress wearing?" She asked.</p><p>"White Keds." Finn replied, looking at the picture. "Why?"</p><p>Quinn picked up one white Keds sneaker from the ground and tossed it to Finn.</p><p>"Let's find our Cinderella." She replied. Artie wolf-whistled.</p><p>"Wow. You two are like peaches and cream." He remarked.</p><p>"Starsky and Hutch." Tina added.</p><p>"Which one's Starsky?" Artie asked.</p><p>"I am." Both of them said simultaneously.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn walked into Kurt's office later that day, who had just crossed out the previous number and had written 2 million.</p><p>"Hey, Kurt, before you add up that bill, the damage to the party happened before we got there." Quinn said.</p><p>"That's true. Although, there may be some landscaping issues." Finn remarked.</p><p>"And you thrashed a motorcycle." Quinn added. Finn glared at her.</p><p>"And the big explosion in the middle of Hollywood." He added.</p><p>"Okay, we're gonna need separate tabs." Quinn stated.</p><p>"Not now. We have company." Kurt said, pointing to the corner of the room. There was a man in a suit sitting there. "This is Special Agent Bennet Hirsch."</p><p>"FBI?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"ATF." Bennet replied. "I'm here because of the gun used at the party. It appears that it was a next-gen weapon that can fire several rounds at once."</p><p>"So who would make something like that?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Could be DAPRA, could be one of several private military contractors."</p><p>"We have a lead on a waitress that fled the scene. She could be a witness." Quinn said. Before she could continue, Kurt raised a hand.</p><p>"Woah, woah, woah. I haven't assigned you guys the case yet."</p><p>Quinn and Finn looked at Kurt in shock.</p><p>"We got the shooter." Quinn argued.</p><p>"Well, I mean, we barbecued the shooter." Finn pointed out. "But we were the first responders."</p><p>Quinn nodded.</p><p>"And, you're forgetting the most important part." She said. "We stopped the noise complaint."</p><p>Kurt sighed.</p><p>"Fine. Find the girl."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>As Quinn and Finn walked into the bullpen, Finn walked away while Quinn walked towards Finn's desk, where a therapist called Dr. Pillsbury. As a condition of Finn being in the field, he had department-mandated therapy. However, he hadn't gone to therapy at all.</p><p>"Hey, doc. How's it going with Finn? Are you making any progress?" She asked. Dr. Pillsbury sighed.</p><p>"I can't discuss a patient with you, Quinn." Dr. Pillsbury replied.</p><p>"Okay, well, just blink or something if you think my life is in danger." Quinn pleaded. Dr. Pillsbury just glared at her. Quinn slumped her shoulders in defeat and just walked away. Finn came back moments later and sat at his desk.</p><p>"Hi. Can I help you?" He asked.</p><p>"I'm sorry to hunt you down, Detective but you've missed our last three sessions."</p><p>Finn, who was rummaging through his desk drawer, looked up at her.</p><p>"I must have gotten the dates wrong." He called.</p><p>"Hmm. Are you looking for this?" She asked, holding a leather alcohol flask in her hands. Finn looked at it and closed his drawer.</p><p>"Absolutely not. It would be inappropriate to drink on duty." He remarked. "But now that I've seen it, it is my duty to confiscate it. You can pick this up at the end of the day. Thank you, Dr. Pillsbury." Finn said, and he started to walk away. Finn walked into the bathroom. He closed the door of the bathroom stall and rather than taking a dump, he opened his flask and took a swig. It had been a hard day and he needed it. He heard someone walk into the stall next to him and close the door.</p><p>"Huh. So, the rumors are true. The women's bathroom is much nicer." He heard Dr. Pillsbury say.</p><p>"Um… I gotta think this is some kind of violation of my privacy." Finn remarked.</p><p>"Finn, our sessions are a condition of you being allowed back in the field. You want to work? You want to carry? You better talk."</p><p>"Okay, Doc." Finn relented. He sighed. "I was leading a mission when things went south. I lost my entire platoon. When I got back home, I wasn't the same man. And my fiancee at the time was a flight attendant. She couldn't be around me anymore. So she left. I tried to get her back. I even… bought a ticket on one of her flights."</p><p>"Mm, let me guess. Everybody got food poisoning?"</p><p>Finn sighed and walked out of the stall. Dr. Pillsbury did too and they faced each other.</p><p>"How'd you know?" Finn asked.</p><p>"That's the plot of Airplane!" She replied. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"It's a hell of a film." he remarked, before walking out of the bathroom. Dr. Pillsbury followed him.</p><p>"All right, Finn, I'm done chasing." She called.</p><p>"We had a nice moment there, Doc. What do you want from me?"</p><p>"Something true. Anything." She pleaded. "What happened to your eye?"</p><p>She pointed to Finn's black eye. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Bar fight."</p><p>"You win?" She asked. Finn chuckled, indicating no. That's when Dr. Pillsbury realised. "That was the point, I suppose."</p><p>Finn looked down at the ground and Dr. Pillsbury walked closer to him.</p><p>"Physical pain is better than emotional any day, but believe it or not, talking helps. What hurts you the most?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"She's pregnant." Artie said. Quinn, Artie, Finn and Tina were in the forensics lab, discussing their Cinderella.</p><p>"How do you know?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Blood samples from Cinderella's shoe show elevated levels of hCG, which are either associated with pregnancy or testicular cancer." Artie explained.</p><p>"I'll go with pregnancy." Quinn replied.</p><p>"That's why you get paid the big bucks!" Artie exclaimed, clapping his hands sarcastically. "I put her somewhere between 9-12 weeks."</p><p>"All right, folks, I may have a lead on our Cinderella." Tina said, looking up from her tablet. Quinn smiled.</p><p>"See, now, that's the kind of useful police work I'm talking about. Talk to me, Tina." Quinn said.</p><p>"The name the catering company had was fake, along with the address. But they did have a number for the phone she used."</p><p>"Okay, so did you do the ping thing to get…?"</p><p>"Oh, ping thing. That's a technical term." Finn snickered. "We should dial the modem, go on GeoCities."</p><p>"I triangulated the phone's most common location by comparing the signal strength to the time lag."</p><p>"Tina… do you have an address for me, yes or no?"</p><p>Tina handed Quinn a slip of paper.</p><p>"Cinderella's address, as requested."</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
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      <p>Quinn and Finn walked into the apartment building and Finn knocked on the door. As they waited for an answer, Quinn and Finn looked around. It was a very rough, filthy neighborhood.</p>
      <p>"Not exactly the ideal digs for an expecting mother." Finn commented, before knocking on the door again. "LAPD! Open up!"</p>
      <p>Again, no answer. Finn and Quinn sighed.</p>
      <p>"I guess we're gonna have to go all the way back to the station and get a warrant." She said.</p>
      <p>Suddenly, the sound of a cat screeching rang through the air. Finn and Quinn looked at each other and smirked.</p>
      <p>"Did you hear that?" Quinn said.</p>
      <p>"Sounds like a woman in distress to me." Finn remarked. Both of them cocked their guns and after taking a step back, Finn kicked down the door and the two stormed in. The two of them walked through the apartment and made sure that there was nobody there. As Quinn walked into the bathroom to search for the woman, she noticed a tube of prescription pills on the counter. She picked them up and read the name on the label.</p>
      <p>"Natasha Belenko." Quinn called to Finn. "Could be her real name. 50 milligrams of Newgen."</p>
      <p>"That's a prenatal vitamin. You take it when you're pregnant and iron-deficient." He explained. Quinn's eyes widened.</p>
      <p>"How the hell do you know that?" Quinn asked, astonished. Before Finn could answer, they both heard footsteps behind them. They turned around to see Natasha in the doorway of the apartment.</p>
      <p>"It's okay. We're the police." Quinn said, gently. "We just want to talk to you."</p>
      <p>The lady bolted and Finn and Quinn groaned before chasing after her. They chased the woman down the hallway and she ran up the stairs.</p>
      <p>"I'm going up!" Finn shouted to Quinn.</p>
      <p>"Okay, you go up! I'll go down!" She shouted. Finn followed Natasha up to the roof of the building. She ran towards the edge of the building and Finn chased after her.</p>
      <p>"Hey! It's okay! Look! I'm a cop, Natasha! It's okay." He said, gently. "I'm a cop."</p>
      <p>"You don't look like a policeman." She screamed.</p>
      <p>"I didn't say I was an exemplary one." Finn replied. Natasha looked down at the other side of the ledge and saw the extremely long drop to the ground. She sobbed. "It's not a great option, Natasha." He commented, as he walked over to the ledge next to her. "It's a long way down."</p>
      <p>On the ground, Quinn watched as Finn walked closer to the ledge. Her eyes widened in alarm.</p>
      <p>"No, no, no, no, no! Finn, get away from the ledge!" She screamed. Finn couldn't hear her though. He was too high up. Finn faced Natasha and sighed.</p>
      <p>"Look, far be it for me to tell anyone that they need to continue living." He said. "My only request… you wait another 7 months."</p>
      <p>"What do you know about me?" She cried.</p>
      <p>"I know you're taking care of yourself because you already love that child. Most important thing in the world to you is protecting that baby. Let me help you."</p>
      <p>"You can't protect us!"</p>
      <p>"Look, I know we just met, but it's probably the only thing I <em>can </em>do."</p>
      <p>Quinn, on the ground, was watching the exchange. Suddenly, a glint of light from the neighboring building caught her eye. She turned to see a hooded man with a sniper rifle, aiming at Natasha. Her eyes widened.</p>
      <p>"FINN!" She shouted. Finn still couldn't hear her.</p>
      <p>"Trust me." He said gently to Natasha. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you."</p>
      <p>Quinn groaned and took out her gun. She was too far from the sniper to be able to make the shot but she had one more option. Squinting one eye shut, Quinn aimed and fired at a satellite next to Finn. He spun around and because he was forced to turn, he saw the sniper. His eyes widened. Gritting his teeth, he sprinted towards Natasha and tackled her off the ledge…</p>
      <p>They were freefalling just as the sniper fired his weapon. The shot missed them as they barreled towards the ground. Finn and Natasha braced for impact but it never came. Instead, they smashed through a window and into the apartment building opposite. They both groaned and coughed as they stumbled to their feet.</p>
      <p>"You okay?" Finn murmured as he helped Natasha up.</p>
      <p>"Yeah, I think so." She replied. Suddenly, someone cleared their throat. They spun around to see a perplexed family staring at them. Finn waved at them.</p>
      <p>"Hey, it's okay. I'm a cop. Uh… the city will take care of all this." He said, pointing to the broken window. "Just tell 'em to put it on my tab. Finn Hudson."</p>
      <p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p>
      <p>Two hours later, Natasha was back at the station in the interrogation room. Finn was in the room with her and Quinn, Kurt and Dr. Pillsbury was watching from the other side of the two-sided mirror.</p>
      <p>"Help me understand this." Captain Hummel said. "He jumped off a roof with her?"</p>
      <p>"More like a leaping dive with a twist." Quinn replied. "But I'm not the most reliable witness. My eyes were closed."</p>
      <p>"This man is truly dangerous." Kurt shook his head. "I can't allow him to be in the field. Doc, you're gonna have to back me up on this. I mean, psychologically speaking, he's… he's nuts, right?"</p>
      <p>"He's in a lot of pain. That's all I can say." Dr. Pillsbury said. "He lost his wife and child less than a year ago."</p>
      <p>Quinn's eyes widened.</p>
      <p>"I'm sorry… child?"</p>
      <p>Dr. Pillsbury looked at him.</p>
      <p>"Quinn, you didn't know? She was pregnant."</p>
      <p>Tears sprang to Quinn's eyes.</p>
      <p>"Oh, my…" She whispered and then she watched Finn talk to Natasha…</p>
      <p>"So what happened?" Finn asked Natasha. She took a deep breath.</p>
      <p>"I was working at a bar in San Diego when I started dating this man. I thought it was love. One day, I took a picture of him, and I wanted to send it to my family. He got mad. He took out the SIM card and microwaved it."</p>
      <p>"What's this lovely gentleman's name?" Finn asked.</p>
      <p>"Gino Corelli." She replied. "But I don't think it's real. I was ready to break it off when…"</p>
      <p>"You got pregnant." Finn finished her sentence. She nodded.</p>
      <p>"So I followed him to a motel one day. I peeked in through the window expecting him to be there with another woman. But instead, there were bags with money and guns in boxes. Then he saw me. And like ice, he shot at me. I was scared, so I ran to L.A to hide out. Then at the party, there was one of the men from the motel. He saw me, and then…"</p>
      <p>Natasha's voice trailed off into silent sobs. Finn put his jacket around her shoulders and he took her hand in his.</p>
      <p>"Hey. It's okay." He whispered. "Natasha. I give you my word. You and your child are gonna be safe."</p>
      <p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p>
      <p>"I want her in protective custody. Safe house. 24 hour watch." Finn demanded to Captain Hummel. "I'll take the first shift."</p>
      <p>"No way. Someone else will cover it." Kurt replied. "Finn, you're not being punished. You did good. The day's over. Go home."</p>
      <p>Finn sighed and sat at his desk. Quinn turned to him.</p>
      <p>"All right, well, I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?"</p>
      <p>"Yeah." He replied. Quinn started to walk away but she turned back around.</p>
      <p>"Hey!" She said.</p>
      <p>"Huh?" Finn replied.</p>
      <p>"You want to come have dinner with us?"</p>
      <p>"No." Finn replied.</p>
      <p>"No?" Quinn spat. "Not a 'No, thank you?' Just flat out rejection."</p>
      <p>"Come on, Q. I know what you're trying to do. All right? I'm not a charity case."</p>
      <p>"You know, personally, I'd like to spend as little time with you as possible. But last night when you didn't show up, Santana made me eat a kale salad. Not even a respectable lettuce. Man, I worked three days on those ribs. You look at 'em and they just fall right off the bone. You want to stay here by yourself, fine with me. My ribs are superb."</p>
      <p>"Quinn…" He chuckled. "I'm from Texas. Come on, don't embarrass yourself. Your ribs are going to be subpar at best."</p>
      <p>Quinn laughed and raised an eyebrow.</p>
      <p>"Oh yeah? Wanna bet?"</p>
      <p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p>
      <p>Finn ended up coming over for dinner that night, and he had to admit, the ribs were decent. There was one more left on the platter and Quinn reached for it but Santana slapped her hand away.</p>
      <p>"No, no, let Finn have it. He's our guest." Santana lectured.</p>
      <p>"But he doesn't want it." Quinn complained. "He's still working on his last one."</p>
      <p>Finn, who was still eating one, took the final rib and put it on his plate.</p>
      <p>"Oh, no, no, no, no. I got room for one more." He smirked. He then proceeded to eat it really slowly, just to annoy Quinn.</p>
      <p>"Can I be excused?" Haley asked. "I have a ton of homework."</p>
      <p>"Phone on the table." Santana said. "And you can leave once our guest is finished."</p>
      <p>"I'm done." Finn replied, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "Thank you, Santana, Quinn. That was excellent."</p>
      <p>"You're always welcome, Finn." Santana replied, smiling at him. He nodded and smiled.</p>
      <p>"Beer?" He asked them.</p>
      <p>"Yeah, man, I'd love one." Luke said. Finn stood up, walking towards the kitchen and he winked.</p>
      <p>"All right!" Finn exclaimed.</p>
      <p>"Absolutely not." Quinn snapped.</p>
      <p>"Oh, come on, Q! What, are you gonna send the kid off to college without a tolerance?" Finn laughed. "You don't want him waking up on some frat house lawn, puking all over himself. My advice, two beers a day and a shot of whiskey on the weekends. Doctor's orders."</p>
      <p>Quinn looked at him like he was insane. Santana however relented.</p>
      <p>"OK, one beer." She replied. "After you finish your homework."</p>
      <p>Quinn scowled at her. Santana giggled.</p>
      <p>"What? I don't want him thinking it's some kind of big rebellion! Right?"</p>
      <p>"Exactly!" Finn agreed.</p>
      <p>"Boy, you can <em>smell</em> a beer. Just a sniff. That's it." Quinn said. Once Luke left the room, Quinn turned to Finn.</p>
      <p>"Some parent you'd make." She remarked before realising what she had said. "Hey, I'm sorry about that."</p>
      <p>Finn furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.</p>
      <p>"About what?" He asked. Suddenly, the baby monitor went off as Alex had started crying.</p>
      <p>"I'll get it." Santana said. "Quinn, come help me?"</p>
      <p>Quinn and Santana both went upstairs together, leaving Finn alone at the table. As they tended to Quinn's baby, Santana turned to Quinn.</p>
      <p>"You know, I heard a crazy story down at the courthouse today." Santana remarked. "There was a high-speed chase in the Hills. Couple of hero cops chased down a propane truck that blew a hole the size of a crater."</p>
      <p>"It was more like a pothole." Quinn defended herself. "And I wouldn't call them 'hero' cops. I mean, these things get exaggerated."</p>
      <p>Quinn stopped talking when Santana shot her a death glare. Quinn sighed.</p>
      <p>"Okay, I didn't want you to be worried." Quinn replied. Santana rolled her eyes.</p>
      <p>"Quinn, I've been the sister of a cop for over 15 years. Worrying, I've learned to live with. Lying, I won't."</p>
      <p>"Okay, I'm sorry." Quinn replied. "It's just, my past two decades as a cop hasn't been as interesting and action-packed as three days with Finn."</p>
      <p>Santana laughed.</p>
      <p>"I noticed." She responded. "He's a good man. And I can't imagine what he's been through."</p>
      <p>"He lost his child." Quinn blurted out. Santana's eyes widened.</p>
      <p>"What?"</p>
      <p>"His wife was 9 months pregnant." Quinn whispered, handing Alex to Santana. As Santana held the child, she thought about what would happen if she lost one of them. They might not be her biological kids but she loved them just the same. Santana put the baby in her crib before turning to Quinn again.</p>
      <p>"Quinn, you remember when you were in uniform, and you busted up that crack house and you brought home the stray?"</p>
      <p>"Yeah. Roscoe was a great dog." Quinn reminisced.</p>
      <p>"Oh, god, Quinn! Roscoe was a nightmare!" Santana chuckled. "I mean, he bit the arm off the sofa, crapped everywhere and attacked every stranger in sight."</p>
      <p>"What are you saying? Is Finn… Roscoe in this scenario?"</p>
      <p>"I'm saying… even though we loved him, we couldn't have Roscoe today."</p>
      <p>"Why? Because we have a bigger house? Nicer things"</p>
      <p>"Because we have more to lose." She replied, pointing to the baby in the crib. Quinn sighed. The two of them walked downstairs to see the dishes all done and table remade. Surprised, Quinn, then walked into the living room, looking for Finn.</p>
      <p>"Finn!" She called, looking all over for him. Eventually, she walked outside and saw Finn lying fast asleep in one of the deckchairs, a beer bottle still in his hands. Quinn walked over to him and rather than waking him up, she gently took the bottle from his limp hands and then covered him with a blanket before walking inside.</p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
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    <p>The next morning, Quinn and Finn walked into the precinct office a little bit late.</p><p>"Sorry we're late. He slept in." Quinn announced. Finn shrugged. He looked around the room and saw Captain Kurt, the ATF agent and Artie all dressed in suits, and he looked down at his three-day-old ratty jacket and pants.</p><p>"I didn't realise this was so formal." Finn remarked. "I would have worn dress socks."</p><p>"I brought the bagels, so…" Artie said. Finn picked one up, ripped a chunk off, scooped some cream cheese straight out the tub and put it in his mouth.</p><p>"You please use a knife?" Artie asked, shuddering. "This is a real meeting."</p><p>"Sorry." Finn replied, rolling his eyes. "Continue."</p><p>"Bullet fragments found at the scene and in the body are particularly lethal. They're designed to split mid air, giving them a wider hit radius and almost 100% accur… Finn, that's not a thing people do. It's not gonna enhance the flavour. It's just weird."</p><p>Finn had just started dipping chunks of bagel in his cup of coffee and eating them.</p><p>"You know, the good news about these bullets, they can only be fired out of one gun, the MG10. It's illegal stateside and it's only licensed for use in the military overseas." Agent Hirsch said.</p><p>"Well, one of 'em got out. Who makes this thing?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"It's a private arms contractor, Stonehill Industrial Group, down south near San Diego."</p><p>Quinn and Finn looked at each other and stood up.</p><p>"Hey, any luck with the witness?" Hirsch asked.</p><p>"She's in protective custody, going through I.D books today." Kurt replied. As Quinn and Finn walked out the door, Hirsch called to them.</p><p>"Hey guys! Just a word to the wise. Arms contractors don't take kindly to accusations of misappropriated weapons." Hirsch said. Kurt turned to his two detectives.</p><p>"What he means is, it's a government facility, so tread lightly."</p><p>Quinn laughed.</p><p>"I'm taking Finn to a gun factory. What could go wrong?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"I don't understand what some gangbanger shooting has to do with this company." The owner of the company, Garrison, said. Quinn and Finn had just arrived at the facility and Quinn was questioning the man while Finn wandered around, exploring the facility.</p><p>"Well, we believe that one of your guns was the murder weapon." Quinn replied. "The MG10."</p><p>"That's impossible." Garrison scoffed. "That weapon's for military use overseas only."</p><p>"I assume that you have records of every weapon you manufacture here." Quinn remarked.</p><p>"Yes. We have detailed manifests to ensure that every gun we make, every gun we ship is accounted for, every single one."</p><p>"Can I see those?" Finn asked. Garrison laughed.</p><p>"Sure. Just call the Pentagon, ask permission. That big building in Arlington?"</p><p>Quinn laughed back.</p><p>"Or…" She said. "I could freeze your operation till I got a warrant. You know, smelly little building in downtown L.A? I could shut you down for days, maybe even weeks."</p><p>Garrison sighed and handed Finn his tablet.</p><p>"You got twenty minutes."</p><p>Quinn smirked.</p><p>"Okay, but don't start the clock until I start reading."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Meanwhile, outside, Finn had just made it out to the testing range, and he watched as one of the men fired a machine gun and practically blew up his target.</p><p>"Whoo!" Finn exclaimed gleefully, clapping his hands. The man turned to face him and put the gun down on a huge pile. "You gotta let me try one of them!"</p><p>"Oh, this is a closed range." The man snapped. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Oh, I'm just browsing. Finn Hudson." He said, holding out his hand for the man to shake.</p><p>"Jack Kirstein." The man replied. "Head of weapons testing."</p><p>As they shook hands, Finn noticed rifle burns on the man's arm. He realised that this could well be the man who took a sniper shot at him and Natasha on the roof.</p><p>"Ooh, those burns look fresh." Finn remarked. "Let me guess. Hot brass from a sniper rifle? You been sharpshooting lately?"</p><p>"I was trying to kill a coyote who was trespassing." He growled, squaring up to Finn. Finn didn't back down or get scared though. He just grinned.</p><p>"Did you get him?" Finn asked, eagerly.</p><p>"Slippery bastard got away." He replied. Finn nodded and started walking around the range. He pointed at a pile of guns.</p><p>"Ooh, what are these?" He asked, grinning.</p><p>"I test the weapons. If they're not up to spec, I tag 'em and they destroy 'em."</p><p>Finn picked up one of the machine guns.</p><p>"But how do you know if they're defective?"</p><p>He pointed the gun upwards and fired a couple of rounds at the air. He started giggling as he fired them but the man wasn't pleased. He quickly grabbed the gun from Finn. As the two men came together, he didn't even notice Finn swiping something from his pocket.</p><p>"That is for authorized professionals only!" He shouted. "You need to leave now!"</p><p>"I was not expecting that kick!" Finn laughed. "That gun is definitely defective though. I'll tell you that right now! It should be destroyed immediately!"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Hey man, while you were playing with toys, look what I found." Quinn said, handing Finn a sheet of paper. "All defective weapons are signed out to the ATF to be destroyed. And look who just signed out a whole cache of those MG-10s."</p><p>Finn attempted to read it and he squinted his eyes to read the tiny font.</p><p>"What does that say? Joe… Gonzo?"</p><p>"Gino Corelli." Quinn snapped, snatching the paper back from Finn. "The fake name of our mystery man. We don't know who he is, but that's a damn good start. That is how Starsky rolls."</p><p>"Or we could just call him." Finn suggested, taking out a phone and showing it to Quinn. "See, because I've got his number right there."</p><p>"How… How you…? How'd you…?" Quinn stammered. Finn smirked.</p><p>"You could be Huggy Bear. That's a good idea. But, see, this is Starsky. Speaking of which, how's your hood slide? 'Cause mine's spectacular."</p><p>"If called upon, I could do a great hood slide." Quinn argued. Finn laughed and pointed to their car in front of them.</p><p>"Consider yourself called upon." Finn remarked. Quinn looked at the car, then back at Finn, then back at the car, then back at Finn.</p><p>"You know, just call the damn number." Quinn snapped. Finn smirked.</p><p>"Uh-huh." He said, and then dialled the number. There was no answer and the phone went straight to voicemail. Finn's face paled. He sprinted over to the car, did an epic hood slide over the car and dove into the front seat.</p><p>"Finn?" Quinn yelled, confused.</p><p>"It was Hirsch's voice on the phone!" Finn shouted back. Quinn's eyes widened in alarm. "Let's go, let's go, let's go!"</p><p>The tyres of the car screeched as Finn drove maniacally to the safehouse…</p><p>Meanwhile, Agent Hirsch had just walked into the safehouse building to 'pick up the witness.' He knocked on the door and Natasha opened it. Her face paled when she saw him and her legs almost gave out. He smirked at her.</p><p>"Hey darling…" He said. "You miss me?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"This is on me!" Finn yelled as they tore towards the safehouse. "I should've stayed with her!"</p><p>"It's not. It was Kurt's call. Besides, we don't know if anything happened yet. Do… do you realize you're in the wrong lane?"</p><p>Finn ignored her.</p><p>"I gave her my word that she was gonna be safe." Finn growled. Quinn called Tina, who picked up immediately.</p><p>"Quinn?" Tina asked.</p><p>"Tina, I need you to connect us to the safe house where Natasha is."</p><p>"Well, she's gone. Agent Hirsch picked her up an hour ago. Took her to the ATF offices for photos."</p><p>Finn slammed his hands on the wheel in frustration. Quinn put a hand on his shoulder.</p><p>"Hey, hey, hey. Agent Hirsch may not know that his cover is blown. All government vehicles are installed with LoJack." Quinn remarked.</p><p>"All right. I'm on it. You want me to put out a BOLO?" Tina asked.</p><p>"Yes!" Finn shouted.</p><p>"No!" Quinn yelled. "Track him and call us back."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Let's go!" Hirsch shouted. He had just pulled into an abandoned warehouse, which was basically a warehouse from hell. It was filled with guns, dynamite and gasoline. Jack, the weapons tester, walked over to him.</p><p>"Yo, we got a problem." He said. "Your cops were sniffing around Stonehill today."</p><p>"I know. We gotta move these to a more secure location now." Hirsch replied, pointing to the guns that were strewn all over the floor."</p><p>Suddenly, there was dull thumping coming from the car. Hirsch sighed.</p><p>"First, we gotta deal with this." He said, walking over to the trunk of his car and opening it to reveal a gagged Natasha, who was inaudibly screaming and crying.</p><p>Meanwhile, Finn and Quinn parked silently outside the warehouse.</p><p>"If we call it in now, SWAT's at least ten minutes away." Quinn informed him. Finn cocked his weapon and nodded.</p><p>"Yeah." Finn growled in reply. Quinn sighed.</p><p>"So let me get this straight… we're going into a room full of trained killers who have guns that have a 100% kill rate."</p><p>Finn's facial expression was unreadable. It was the expression of a… of a soldier.</p><p>"Yup." He replied. Quinn sighed.</p><p>"All right." She replied. "Just wanted to make sure that you were up to speed."</p><p>"Ready?" Finn asked. Quinn looked at her smartwatch, which read her heart rate as 90bpm.</p><p>"Let's go."</p><p>They got out of the car and they walked over to the entrance of the warehouse, where there was a small window by the door. They peered in to see a couple of gunmen, all carrying the unique machine guns. Finn turned to Quinn.</p><p>"I have an idea." Finn murmured.</p><p>"Yeah?"</p><p>"You stay out here and cover the perimeter. I'm gonna go inside. I got this. I got it."</p><p>Quinn grabbed his arm.</p><p>"No, no, no! I got a better idea. I go inside, YOU stay out here with the perimeter."</p><p>Finn chuckled.</p><p>"Good one, Quinn. I'll see you inside." He whispered before scurrying away. Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"I'll see you inside." She murmured. As she prepared to burst in, her watch started beeping louder and louder. She groaned and took it off her wrist.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Meanwhile, in her firm, Santana was working hurriedly when suddenly, she got an alert on her computer. She opened it to reveal Quinn's heart rate app. She watched as her heart rate went from 110 to 120 to 130 before the message DISCONNECTED appeared on the screen. Santana took off her glasses nervously and watched the screen.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"All right, we need to make it look like I was ambushed before you kill her." Hirsch said, spraying his empty car with rounds. He then dragged Natasha, who was shouting NO over her gag, onto her knees. "I'm gonna make it look like I was caught in the crossfire, so I want you to shoot me in the right shoulder."</p><p>Jack cocked his gun and aimed carefully at Hirsch's shoulder.</p><p>"Are you sure you can make this shot?" Hirsch asked. Jack rolled his eyes.</p><p>"I test guns for a living. There's no one better." He snarled. A shot rang out a moment later. However, rather than Hirsch going down, it was Jack's skull where the bullet was buried and he collapsed in a heap. Finn stood in the doorway of the warehouse. Quinn stormed the warehouse moments later…</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Using the distraction, Finn made a beeline for Natasha and tackled her, pulling her to safety from the gunfire. He yanked the gag off her.</p><p>"You okay?" Finn asked.</p><p>"Thank you." She sobbed.</p><p>"All right. It's over!" Quinn shouted. "Put your weapons down!"</p><p>"Yeah, we're not gonna do that!" Hirsch laughed. "We've got more, and, well… ours are bigger."</p><p>"Yeah, well, SWAT will be here any second." Quinn yelled.</p><p>"Really? Because you know what I think?" Hirsch shouted. "I think you two morons came alone."</p><p>"He's onto us, Quinn!" Finn called. "Look, I mean, the moron part was a little harsh, but, uh… maybe we should just surrender."</p><p>"Hell no!" Quinn replied. "We're going out shooting!"</p><p>"Hey, to be candid, Quinn, you're a terrible shot." Finn remarked.</p><p>"Yeah, I may not be a sniper like you, but I hit what's in front of me." Quinn spat back. Finn peered out from his hiding spot and saw something… it was a truck filled with dynamite and fireworks.</p><p>"Yeah. Hit what's directly in front of you, Q!" Finn shouted. "And hey…"</p><p>"Huh?"</p><p>"Don't worry about collateral damage this time!"</p><p>Quinn peered around and realised what Finn was talking about. She fired a single bullet at the truck but surprisingly, nothing happened. Finn peered out from his hiding spot.</p><p>"What, did you miss?" He asked. "It's a huge target!"</p><p>"I shot the truck!" Quinn shouted.</p><p>"You were supposed to hit the gas tank!" Finn shouted back. Little did they know that the bullet had ripped through the truck and hit one of the fireworks, setting the tip of it alight. They had only a couple of seconds before it exploded.</p><p>"I didn't have an angle on the gas tank!" Quinn yelled back.</p><p>"Then why didn't you say…" Finn started but was cut off.</p><p>"OHHHH! I can't wait for you two to shut up!" Hirsch shouted. Then, without warning, the fireworks and dynamite exploded. Finn, Quinn and Natasha dashed out the door and almost the second they were out the door, the whole warehouse exploded in an inferno. The fireworks shot into the sky and ignited in multi-colored bursts of light. Finn, Quinn and Natasha, who were lying on the ground, admired the fireworks.</p><p>"Oh man." Quinn groaned, smiling at Finn. Finn grinned back.</p><p>Meanwhile, back in the LAPD, Kurt looked out the window of his office and saw the fireworks. He put his head in his hand. He had a sinking feeling in his chest.</p><p>"Please, someone tell me where Finn and Quinn are."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next morning, Finn was sitting in Dr. Pillsbury's office for his first therapy session. After everything he'd been through, therapy was long overdue. However, he looked extremely uncomfortable as he fidgeted in his seat.</p><p>"We could move our session to the men's room if that would make you feel more comfortable." Dr. Pillsbury joked.</p><p>"No. No. It smells much nicer in here." He replied.</p><p>"Well, after reading the report, it seems your actions and Quinn's were justified. Dare I say heroic."</p><p>"All in a day's work, ma'am." He brushed it off.</p><p>"Suppose that depends on your job." Dr. Pillsbury remarked. Finn didn't respond. She took a deep breath. She obviously knew that Finn was going to be a tough nut to crack. "I must've felt good to give her and her child a future."</p><p>Again, no response. Dr. Pillsbury sighed.</p><p>"We could sit here and talk about crappy B-movies…"</p><p>"Classics." Finn interrupted.</p><p>"...Or we could talk about, what are your plans tonight?"</p><p>"Well, doc, it's a little forward. I mean…"</p><p>Dr. Pillsbury rolled her eyes.</p><p>"I mean when you leave here. When there's no one else around. When you go home."</p><p>"Well, I don't have a home. Sold it the other day."</p><p>"You mean back in Texas."</p><p>"Yup."</p><p>"Finn, I can't fix you." Dr. Pillsbury said. Finn chuckled. "There are no words in the world that can make up for what you lost. I just want to help take away some of your pain."</p><p>Finn shook his head.</p><p>"Sorry, Doc. Pain's all I've got."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn was bragging to the precinct about their recent conquests.</p><p>"Was I afraid for my life? A woman's life was in danger. What is Lucy Quinn Fabray supposed to do? Now, some may call it heroic. I don't like using such braggadocious words. I simply call it… Tuesday."</p><p>Everyone laughed and clapped. Suddenly, a voice spoke up from behind her…</p><p>"Wow! Can't wait to hear about Wednesday."</p><p>Quinn's eyes widened and she turned around to face Santana. Everyone hurriedly got back to work, however they were all listening in to the conversation.</p><p>"What are you doing here, San?"</p><p>"I came to check on a client in holding." She replied. "FALSELY arrested. But since I'm here, I'd love to hear more about the exploits of Fabray!"</p><p>"Aw, it was nothing, it was just, um…"</p><p>"Just what?" Santana asked. "Just… Tuesday? I'm surprised you even know what day it is, since you don't have your watch on."</p><p>Quinn looked at her bare wrist.</p><p>"Oh, must have fallen off." Quinn stammered. "You know, they're really flimsy…"</p><p>"Uh-uh, Quinn." Santana glared at her. Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Okay, fine. I took it off. I was going into a shootout with a bunch of armed men with illegal machine guns with 100% kill rate."</p><p>"And?" Santana snapped.</p><p>"I handled my business." Quinn boasted. Santana laughed.</p><p>"Damn right you did. All right, you don't want to wear your watch? Fine. So… we need to figure out a way to lower your heart rate." She pondered, before coming to a conclusion. "No more ribs."</p><p>Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"No more ribs?! NO MORE RIBS?! San, ribs is all I got left in this world! I mean, besides my kids and you."</p><p>Santana rolled her eyes and got into the lift. There was one man already in the elevator when she walked in: Finn.</p><p>"Hey!" She exclaimed when she saw Finn.</p><p>"Hey." He replied. "What are you doing here?"</p><p>"Freeing an innocent man. Where are you coming from?"</p><p>"Psych evaluation." Finn replied.</p><p>"And? Are you crazy, Finn?"</p><p>"Seems to be the consensus."</p><p>"Not to me." She replied. Finn looked at her and smiled. They made it to the car park moments later and they walked out of the lift to go their separate ways.</p><p>"Have a good night, Santana." Finn said.</p><p>"You too." She replied. Just as Finn was about to get into his car, she hurried over to him. "Finn?"</p><p>"Yeah?"</p><p>"No matter what I say to Quinn, she's gonna follow you down any rabbit hole you go through. And that's okay. It's what she needs as a cop and probably as a person. But I can't imagine what I'd do if I lost her. So I need you to promise me one thing. At the end of every shift, make sure she comes home."</p><p>Finn nodded and saluted.</p><p>"Yes, ma'am." He replied. "I'll do the best I can."</p><p>Santana chuckled.</p><p>"Well, from what I hear, that ought to do."</p><p>As Santana drove away, Quinn walked up to Finn.</p><p>"You're a lucky woman, Quinn. Having a family as amazing as yours." He remarked.</p><p>"That I am." She replied. "Hey. You want to come over, have some barbecued halibut?"</p><p>Finn looked at her and raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"I think I'll pass." He replied, before walking away.</p><p>"Well, what about a drink?" She asked. Finn stopped walking and turned around.</p><p>"Sure. I know a great place."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>On a sunny L.A afternoon, a woman walked into a dispensary. Of course, in L.A, marajuana was perfectly legal.</p><p>"Welcome to Budding Blossom. What can I get for you today?" The cheerful shop clerk asked.</p><p>"You know, I'm not exactly sure." She replied.</p><p>"Well, I just got this new Sativa strain in. It's called Jack the Ripper. It's citrusy, high energy. Great for work if you need a little afternoon kick."</p><p>"Nah, I'm more looking to zone out to the Kardashians after my kid goes to bed, but I don't want the munchies." She stated. The clerk chuckled and nodded.</p><p>"Totes. You want 'Weed Thins.' Hunger-suppressing Indica hybrid."</p><p>"I'll take an eighth." She smiled. He nodded and she left shortly after paying. The money that she paid went into the dispensary's storage and a couple of days later, boxes of money were packed up and placed in an armoured vehicle for transport. The truck made it around a kilometer before being rammed into by an 18 wheeler. Before the truck driver could respond, the man was thrown out of the car by two men in sky masks. The men then hijacked the truck and drove away with the cash.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn lit a cigarette and put it to his lips as he watched a nature documentary on his tiny trailer TV.</p><p>"The female praying mantis begins to kill the male by devouring his jaw. The male is simply the nearest food source around. When we return, the female will lay honeycomb casings to protect her hundreds of eggs."</p><p>Finn watched as the documentary suddenly turned to a commercial. It was typical mushy, lovey-dovey crap and it seared a hole in Finn's chest as it reminded him of Rachel.</p><p>"You're the perfect couple." The commercial said. "You've had a connection since the day you met, but you've been slowly down recently. Well, there's now an easier way to revitalise your relationship and keep that connection going. Introducing…"</p><p>Finn never watched the end of the commercial though. It became too painful to watch and rather than turning the TV off, Finn shot it with his gun. It sparked and smoked for several moments later.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn pulled up to the crime scene to see Finn already there. Quinn stormed over to him.</p><p>"Dude, what the hell?!" She exclaimed.</p><p>"Yo!" Finn replied.</p><p>"I told you I was on my way." She snapped. Finn furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.</p><p>"You said 'I'll meet you there'." Finn replied. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"Yes, 'there'. At the office. And then we drive TOGETHER!" She spat. Finn cocked his head.</p><p>"Huh? 'There' means the crime scene." He remarked. Quinn shook her head furiously.</p><p>"Maybe in Texas. Not in L.A."</p><p>Tina walked up to them, holding three cup of coffee. Finn and Quinn accepted them gratefully.</p><p>"Tina, tell him what 'there' means here!" Quinn exclaimed.</p><p>"There where?" Tina asked.</p><p>"Here." Quinn responded.</p><p>"What?" Tina asked, completely at a loss.</p><p>"If I say, Tina meet me there, where do you go?"</p><p>"There." Tina replied.</p><p>"Which is where?"</p><p>"Here."</p><p>Finn sighed.</p><p>"Okay, that's great. I'm glad you guys cleared that up for me." Finn said, sarcastically. "So, what do we got, Tina?"</p><p>"Our suspects fled in the truck after removing the LoJack. There's no witnesses, except for the driver, a retired cop by the name of Sue Sylvester."</p><p>Quinn's head shot up.</p><p>"Sue Sylvester? That's my old training officer. Is she okay?"</p><p>"Well, she took a pretty bad blow to the head. The EMTs are cleaning her up now."</p><p>Quinn turned around and walked over to her old mentor. Sue chuckled when she saw the detective.</p><p>"H… hey, Q!" Sue exclaimed.</p><p>"How are you doing, Sue?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"I'm good." She replied.</p><p>"Take it easy, there." Quinn said. Finn snickered.</p><p>"Oh, no! Not 'there'! Don't confuse the poor lady, Quinn!" Finn remarked. Quinn sighed.</p><p>"My new partner. Mr. Delightful." Quinn introduced him.</p><p>"Finn Hudson." Finn said, shaking Sue's hand. "Glad you're alright."</p><p>"Thank you." She replied.</p><p>"Any chance you're available for some remedial partner training?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Oh, hell, I need the training." Sue remarked. "Look at me. I feel like a damn fool."</p><p>"I hate to break it to you, but you've never been much to look at, Sue." Quinn remarked. The two women chuckled.</p><p>"Hey, Sue. Whose money were you driving?" Finn asked.</p><p>"The cash all came from the local pot shops. I was driving it to the company I work for: Joint Asset Securities. They're some kind of… um… financial services for the dispensaries."</p><p>"Mm-kay, well that's something to go on." Quinn said.</p><p>"Thanks, Sue." Finn said.</p><p>"Take it easy." Quinn said.</p><p>"You, too." Sue replied. Finn and Quinn walked back to Tina, who had gathered a bit of information.</p><p>"So, Ned's company is downtown. I'll send you guys the address."</p><p>"Okay, we're on our way." Quinn said. "I'll meet you…"</p><p>"There?" Finn cut in, smirking at her. Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Yeah. There." She snapped before storming off. Finn chased after her, laughing.</p><p>"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm kidding. Like where are we really going? I'm confused."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"So, Ms. Carlson, how long have you been selling pot for a living?"</p><p>Quinn and Finn were visiting Joint Asset Securities and were questioning the owner of the company.</p><p>"My clients make their living selling maijuana, detective. I manage their money."</p><p>"You know, in Texas, we still call that laundering." Finn remarked.</p><p>"And in Texas, it would be." She replied. "But in California, pot is legal. Dispensaries earn 3 billion a year, all of it in cash, but they're legally prohibited from using banks."</p><p>"And what do you get out of it?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"20%."</p><p>Finn and Quinn wolf whistled.</p><p>"20%? Is that legal?"</p><p>"Reflects my risk." She replied. Finn rolled his eyes.</p><p>"So? I had my ass blown up every day for 14 years with the SEALs and I earnt minimum wage." Finn argued. The lady shrugged.</p><p>"The Feds won't insure their money, so I do, which is why I'm on the hook for the $17 million that was on the truck."</p><p>"Are the deposits always that big?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Not even close." She replied. "It was tax day. Dispensaries have to pay state tax just like everyone else. But, without access to banks, they pay in cash."</p><p>"Who else knew it was tax day pickup?" Finn asked.</p><p>"Just my clients." She responded. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"So, we're gonna need a list of those clients."</p><p>The lady sighed.</p><p>"Confidentiality is extremely important to my business, detectives." She said, taking out a file from her desk. "I'll need you both to be discreet."</p><p>Finn laughed.</p><p>"Oh, we're very discreet. I mean, me so more than her. But, you know, her too."</p><p>The lady rolled her eyes and handed Quinn the file, ignoring Finn's outstretched hand.</p><p>"Good choice." Quinn chuckled.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn parked in front of their first house on the list. It was up in Hollywood Hills. They got out of Quinn's car and slammed the doors shut. The mansion they were walking into was a colossal, luxurious establishment and Finn wolf whistled.</p><p>"Do you ever feel like you made the wrong career choice?" Finn commented.</p><p>"Yeah. The day I met you." She replied. "All right, so the house is co-owned by a Lon Stober and a Donald Duncan. They're partners in a dispensary called Budding Blossom."</p><p>Finn and Quinn walked into the house and immediately started coughing and spluttering. The smell of weed was an intoxicating cloud in the air.</p><p>"You ever smoke weed?" Finn asked as they stepped inside. "I mean, before you became a cop?"</p><p>"Nah, I was a cheerleader." Quinn replied. "I didn't have time to mess with that stuff. You?"</p><p>Finn chuckled.</p><p>"Nah, of course not. Straight as they come." He remarked. Quinn rolled her eyes as she thought back to that first dinner with Finn and her family. "It stinks like patchouli oil in here."</p><p>"Hey, who are we looking for again?" Quinn asked. When she got no answer, she turned around and realised that Finn was gone. She groaned and decided to just search the house without him. Finn walked outside and over to two girls who were tanning in skimpy bikinis on deckchairs.</p><p>"Excuse me." Finn said. "Sorry to bother you lovely ladies but could you tell me where I would find a… Lon Stober or Donald Duncan?"</p><p>"Lonnie and Donnie." One of the girls drawled, obviously intoxicated. "Donnie and Lonnie. Wonder if they have a brother named Ronnie?"</p><p>Finn chuckled.</p><p>"That's a really good question." He replied.</p><p>"Hey!" Quinn snapped from behind him. Finn turned to face her. "Don't disappear on me when we're working together. Try to remember that we're partners."</p><p>"Aw, you two are partners?" One of the girls gasped. "That is great. How long have you been together?"</p><p>"No, we're not…" Quinn started but Finn cut her off.</p><p>"How long has it been, Quinn? You know, I feel like it was just yesterday I saw her from across a crowded room. It was a Sadie Hawkins dance and neither of us had a date."</p><p>Quinn rolled her eyes and then two men walked up to them.</p><p>"Can we help you two?" They asked. Quinn and Finn turned around to face them.</p><p>"Ah, let me guess: Lonnie and Donnie."</p><p>"That's right. Who are you?" One of them asked.</p><p>"Detectives Hudson and Fabray, LAPD. We need to ask you a couple questions." Quinn demanded. The men glared at them.</p><p>"Where have you guys been? That was our tax money on that truck!"</p><p>"Yeah, we know. And we'll get to it. But first, I need to ask…" Quinn started but was cut off by Finn.</p><p>"Do either of you have a brother named Ronnie?" Finn asked. Quinn sighed and rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Does everyone here have a valid medical marijuana license?" Quinn asked. The two boys looked at each other.</p><p>"Yes." One said.</p><p>"Probably." The other said.</p><p>"Right. I'm gonna go, uh… check IDs." Finn remarked before walking away. He walked back into the house and as he looked at the staircase, his jaw dropped… Rachel was walking up the stairs. Finn quickly ran over to the stairs and followed the woman up.</p><p>"Excuse me!" He shouted. The woman turned around and when she did, Finn realised that it wasn't Rachel. Merely a lookalike. Finn blinked, focussing his eyes. He sighed. Of course it wasn't Rachel. Rachel was gone and she wasn't coming back.</p><p>"What?" The woman asked. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"Sorry."</p><p>Meanwhile, outside, Quinn was questioning Lonnie and Donnie.</p><p>"So, how much money do you keep with Joint Asset Securities?" Quinn asked them.</p><p>"All of it." Lonnie replied. "Angela knows everything about finance and taxes, and all that. She doesn't even smoke."</p><p>Donnie suddenly lit a cigarette and started smoking. Quinn scowled at him.</p><p>"Hey. Could you not do that around me? I have to get drug tested." Quinn snapped. Donnie nodded. "Good day, gentlemen." Quinn said and then walked back into the house. She walked upstairs and approached a door. She knocked on it. It swung open moments later and Finn stumbled out of the room, his eyes bloodshot and small.</p><p>"We're all good in there." Finn remarked. Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Did you just…" Quinn asked, astonished.</p><p>"Huh? N… no. No." Finn chuckled. "You want to go get something to eat? I'm famished."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Chapter 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Finn? Hello?"</p><p>Finn snapped himself out of his doze and realised that he was in the therapy office, looking at a perplexed Dr. Pillsbury.</p><p>"I'm sorry." He blinked. "Uh… what was the question?"</p><p>"You… you asked me a question." She replied. "A-about the protocols in place for an officer who tests positive for drugs he ingested while in the line of duty."</p><p>Finn nodded in realisation.</p><p>"Um, sorry. Yeah. So, Quinn and I, we had to go investigate this pot party and there was just a ton of second hand smoke so… you know. Just want to make sure nobody gets in trouble."</p><p>"Well, in that case, there's a form I could give you that would clear you from any testing for the next 90 days."</p><p>Finn grinned.</p><p>"Perfect." He replied. "Can I get one of those?"</p><p>Dr. Pillsbury walked over to the cupboard and took out a form and handed it to him.</p><p>"Do you get high, Finn?" She asked. "I mean, when you're not working?"</p><p>"What? No. I mean, you know, I drink a little. You know, very occasionally. Uh, social functions, holiday parties and the like."</p><p>"Self-medicating with drugs and alcohol, that's something I talk about with a lot of people in this room. 'Cause what's said in this room, stays in this room."</p><p>Finn sighed and stood up.</p><p>"Well, I'll tell you what. Why don't you talk to Fabray if you think I'm lying?"</p><p>"I didn't say you were." She said, scribbling her signature on the drug test form. As soon as she did, Finn snatched it from her and made his way towards the door. Right before he left the room, he stopped and sighed.</p><p>"So, I woke up this morning… with the TV on, and… you know… there's one of those annoying commercials where the couples are frolicking around, you know, overly happy. And it was difficult to watch."</p><p>"What did you do?" Dr. Pillsbury asked gently.</p><p>"Shot the TV." Finn grumbled before walking out of the room.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"So, how are Sam and the kids?" Sue asked Quinn. They were sitting in the precinct, catching up.</p><p>"Um… the kids are good. Sam and I got divorced a couple of months ago."</p><p>"Well, if he's gone, I guess it's safe to say I hated that guy!" Sue exclaimed. Quinn laughed.</p><p>"Yeah, he wasn't exactly faithful so I ended it. Santana actually moved in with me. She's kicking ass, taking names."</p><p>Sue and Santana had met at a Christmas party when Quinn was training in the police academy.</p><p>"That's cool. And the kids?"</p><p>"Well, I have a baby now which is crazy, you know, starting over again."</p><p>"I can't believe you're doing that. I mean, I can't believe you didn't just take the pension and hang it up."</p><p>Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"I'll hang it up when the bad guys do. How's Harrison?"</p><p>Harrison was Sue's husband. Sue took a deep breath and closed her eyes.</p><p>"Harrison died of Prostate Cancer 6 months ago."</p><p>Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"What? Oh, God, no!"</p><p>"Tom wanted to keep it very private. Died like she lived."</p><p>"Sue, I wish I could have been there for you."</p><p>"Well, I was married to the job the first 20 years with Tom, and… the next 20 were supposed to be ours, for us. Best laid plans, right?"</p><p>Finn suddenly walked over to them.</p><p>"Look at this. Little family reunion." He remarked. "This warrants a little bit of scotch at least, right?"</p><p>"You know, for this reunion, a Babs would be more appropriate." Sue responded. Quinn's face lit up but Finn's was filled with confusion.</p><p>"Even better. What's her number?" He asked. Sue raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Wait a minute, he doesn't know… he doesn't know what a Babs is?"</p><p>"No." Quinn grinned, shaking her head.</p><p>"Are you teaching him nothing?!" Sue shouted.</p><p>"It's not that I'm not teaching him, he's just not learning." Quinn said, and then turned to Finn. "A Babs - Bad Ass Breakfast Sandwich."</p><p>"Quinn used to bring me one every Friday from the only deli that does it right. In Hawthorne."</p><p>"Good little trainee." Finn laughed. "So you guys solve the case yet?"</p><p>"Not yet." Quinn replied. "Is there anything else about these guys?" Quinn asked Sue.</p><p>"Uh, yeah, the one thing, there was this smell. This earthy kind of incense."</p><p>"Patchouli oil." Finn realised. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"What did that lady say about tax day pick-up? Only her clients knew? Lonnie…"</p><p>"And Donnie." Finn finished. Sue smirked.</p><p>"You know, for being new partners, you guys are pretty good together. You guys take the partnership from the streets to the sheets?"</p><p>Finn and Quinn looked at each other in horror.</p><p>"Eww! NO!" Quinn yelled. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Um… ouch! You would be lucky to get with this!" Finn remarked. Quinn rolled her eyes and the two of them got up to go find their suspects.</p><p>They arrived at the house moments later and surprisingly, it was completely empty. Quinn and Finn tiptoed into the house.</p><p>"Lonnie?!" Quinn shouted. "Donnie?! LAPD. Hello?"</p><p>No answer. Quinn and Finn made their way into the dining room and what they saw was literally terrifying. Lying on opposite sides on the table, on plates, were the severed heads of Lonnie and Donnie. Finn and Quinn both grimaced. Finn looked at the heads and then turned to Quinn.</p><p>"Well, we found our potheads…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next morning, Quinn sat at her kitchen, drinking a cup of coffee, when Santana walked into the room and saw her.</p><p>"Quinn, when did you get home?"</p><p>"15 minutes ago. You were in the shower." Quinn replied. "I pulled an all-nighter. Two murders. Decapitations. Savage."</p><p>"Decapitations?" Santana grimaced. "Good Lord."</p><p>"I just came home to get a decent cup of coffee before I head back to the office."</p><p>"Well, you're gonna need some sleep when you get home. It's a good thing we postponed Girl's night, huh?"</p><p>Quinn shook her head.</p><p>"No. It's not a good thing. I ran into Sue yesterday. Tom died. 6 months ago. Cancer."</p><p>"No." Santana whispered. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"She said she wanted to spend time with him once she retired. I know we're not dating but I don't want to be Ned. Girls night… tonight."</p><p>Santana nodded.</p><p>"I'll move some things around." She replied. Quinn smiled.</p><p>"Thanks. You know, if it's not that important."</p><p>"It's work." Santana scoffed. "You are more important."</p><p>Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Santana and Quinn peered through the window and saw Finn standing there.</p><p>"Hey, look who's here." Quinn remarked to her friend.</p><p>"Oh, gosh!" Santana chuckled. "Invite him in."</p><p>Quinn groaned and walked over to the door and opened it. Finn strolled inside.</p><p>"What are you doing here?" Quinn snapped. Finn furrowed his eyebrows.</p><p>"Huh? I'm here." He stated.</p><p>"Why?" Quinn spat.</p><p>"Here is <em>there.</em>" Finn said. Quinn shook her head furiously.</p><p>"No, no, no. <em>There </em>is the office. <em>Here </em>is my house." Quinn responded. Finn groaned and banged his head against the kitchen counter. "We meet <em>there, </em>and then we drive together."</p><p>Finn sighed and put his head in his hands.</p><p>"So now what do we do?" He asked.</p><p>"I'm gonna go take a shower. Try not to steal nothin'." Quinn snapped and then walked upstairs.</p><p>As Quinn showered, Finn walked into the kitchen and put some deli meat on the fryer. Quinn walked in to him cooking and whistling to himself.</p><p>"Just make yourself at home, Finn." Quinn remarked. Finn smirked.</p><p>"Oh, thanks. I already did." He replied.</p><p>"So how long were you waiting outside?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"I was gonna come in, you know, but I didn't want to barge in on you and Santana. You seemed happy."</p><p>"Hmm. Hey, you know, I was thinking, we should talk to the Gang Unit about the decapitat… whoa." Quinn gasped, watching as Finn dunked his fried cold cut in a tub of mustard and put it in his mouth.</p><p>"Yeah, decapitation can be very disturbing." Finn nodded. Quinn shook her head.</p><p>"No, that breakfast of yours is disturbing. That's just not right, man."</p><p>"You don't want in on this?" Finn asked, holding out his fryer of cold cuts. "You know, I saw some decaps in Texas. All cartel-related. And they always outsourced their wet work to local gangs. You may be onto something."</p><p>Quinn couldn't focus though. Her eyes were trained on Finn's disgusting breakfast.</p><p>"You know, I-I can't do this. I can't… I can't talk to you while you're eating like that."</p><p>"You can't or you won't?" Finn asked.</p><p>"Both, Finn, both."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn paid a visit to the Gang Unit of the LAPD that afternoon.</p><p>"Negative. Cartels aren't in L.A." One of the sergeants said. "If you're looking for head choppers, try the Jamaicans. Kingston Boys, over on Manchester. I'll send you intel."</p><p>"Thanks for the tip." Finn replied. Finn wasn't listening though. Immediately, he noticed one of the officers. The man was Hispanic and he had gang tats all over him. But the most noticeable aspect was the massive scar on his neck.</p><p>"Hey, young man, what's your name?" Finn asked him. The man turned around and faced him.</p><p>"Puck." He snapped.</p><p>"Nasty scar you got there on your neck. Something you can tell us?"</p><p>"Just what Sarge said." Puck replied. Finn laughed.</p><p>"Just what Sarge said." He chuckled. Quinn had started listening in and Finn turned to her. "This kid, I don't know if he's more scared of his Sarge or his shadow." Finn remarked as they walked away. Puck growled at them.</p><p>"I ain't afraid of anything." He snapped.</p><p>"Good, because here's the deal, Puck. We have two headless bodies, not in Mexico, in L.A." Quinn said.</p><p>Puck sighed.</p><p>"Okay, look, the cartels are active in L.A. But I hear they're outsourcing to local gangs."</p><p>"You hear?" Finn remarked. "All right, man. Good luck growing a pair."</p><p>"I used to roll with the Locos." Puck shouted as they walked away. Finn and Quinn stopped walking and turned around to face him. The Locos were one of the fiercest gangs in L.A. "They'd take cartel jobs."</p><p>"The Locos?" Finn asked. "That who burned the gang tat off your neck after you quit?"</p><p>"No. I burned it off." He snapped. "Look, check the heads. The cartels use machetes. It might get you somewhere."</p><p>As Puck started to walk away, Finn called him back.</p><p>"Hey Puck! You want to roll with us? Play homicide detective for a little while? You can sit on her lap. She might even let you play with the siren."</p><p>Quinn groaned.</p><p>"Oh no. He loves the siren. I hate it."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Definitely a machete but, here's a plot twist, the decapitation was post-mortem. Cause of death was electrocution, courtesy of… wait for it… a cattle prod."</p><p>They were back in the forensics lab and Artie had just finished his autopsy on the corpses.</p><p>"They tortured him for information." Finn murmured. Artie nodded.</p><p>"Yeah, from the severity of the burns, I'd say this prod runs at 15 thousand volts."</p><p>Quinn whistled.</p><p>"That's twenty times stronger than a defibrillator." She commented.</p><p>"You got a pacemaker?" Artie asked. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>"You might want to stay away from these things." Artie said. Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Ya think?"</p><p>"I know a sick banger who tortures people with a cattle prod." Puck remarked from the corner of the room. Name's Paco. runs a gang out of Venice called Los Alvos."</p><p>"Sounds lovely. Can't wait to meet him." Finn grinned. "Thanks, Artie."</p><p>"You got it."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Chapter 12</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>That afternoon, Finn and Quinn pulled up at a parking garage and watched as five Hispanic men worked on one of the cars.</p><p>"I'm not sure if any of them are Paco." Quinn remarked. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"We can just go ask. They seem like the friendly sort."</p><p>Quinn sighed and turned to him.</p><p>"Finn, let's use this as a learning opportunity. Okay, I covered for you with Kurt with the weed but my generosity goes only so far. Let's be the smart ones."</p><p>"You know what, Q? I couldn't agree more." He said. He looked at Quinn for a moment before turning and walking towards the garage. "PACO!" He shouted. Quinn groaned and ran after him.</p><p>"Not smart, Finn! Not smart!"</p><p>Finn approached the men.</p><p>"Whassup? You know me?" One of the men, presumably Paco, said. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"I mean, I know of you. You're Paco, right? Sagittarius, like playing shock the monkey and chopping off people's heads. Finn and Quinn. Nice to meet you."</p><p>Paco raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"There's just two of you?" He asked, confused.</p><p>"No, we got backup coming." Quinn snapped.</p><p>"Yup, just the two of us. Me and my partner. Drove here together and everything." Finn continued, ignoring Quinn. She glared at him. The men started to circle the two detectives and Finn raised his hands. "Guys, let's just…"</p><p>Finn didn't finish his sentence. He grabbed a nearby wrench and threw it at one of the men. Finn fought off the four men as Paco bolted.</p><p>"I got him!" Quinn shouted, taking off after him. After Finn finished beating up the four guys, he hurried after Paco and Quinn, who were now in the junkyard and were in a maze of cars. Quinn tiptoed through the maze and as she turned a corner, she felt her gun get knocked out of her hands by a boot. Unarmed, Quinn then heard the unmistakable sound of a cattle prod firing up. She retreated slightly.</p><p>"Hey, easy dude. Don't do something you'll regret." She murmured. Suddenly, like Spiderman, Finn leapt off of a pile of cars and tackled Paco to the ground. In the process, Paco stabbed Finn with the lit cattle prod but Finn just laughed maniacally. Quinn quickly regained her bearings, grabbed a spare part from one of the cars and battered Paco in the head with it, knocking him out. Finn groaned in pain as he slowly stood up. He grinned at her.</p><p>"Told you I had your back, Quinn."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn walked into the interrogation room that afternoon to find Puck already standing in the corner of the room, staring at a restrained Paco.</p><p>"You know what the best thing about being cattle prodded is?" Finn asked Paco. "I mean aside from gaining a new appreciation for the struggles of cattle everywhere? It leaves a distinctive burn. Unique, like a fingerprint."</p><p>Finn rolled up his shirt to show an inflamed cattle prod scar on his stomach.</p><p>"Now, that's a perfect match to the burns on my two decapitated corpses."</p><p>"You just hit the jackpot!" Puck exclaimed to Paco. "A double life sentence in San Quentin."</p><p>Paco glared at Puck.</p><p>"Estás muerto hoy." Paco growled at him, meaning 'you're dead today.' Finn chuckled.</p><p>"Paco, come on, now. Is that any way to talk to an industry colleague?" Finn asked. "Look, there's no shame in being in a starter gang. I was in one in middle school. It was awesome… we had little bells on our bikes and everything."</p><p>"Better ink I bet." Puck remarked, pointing to the tattoo on Paco's neck. "RIP Chuy? Didn't know you were a Star Wars nerd. Don't look like the Force is with you now, bro."</p><p>Paco then went off on a rant in rapidfire Spanish that he assumed Finn wouldn't understand. Once he was done, Finn leaned in and looked at him.</p><p>"Muchas gracias mi amigo."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Look, the cartels used to make billions off of marijuana." Quinn explained to Kurt. Since the pot shops opened, they've been losing a fortune. They got to wet their beaks somehow. My guess is, some of that money was theirs."</p><p>Kurt nodded.</p><p>"So they send in a sociopath with a penchant of machetes and cattle prods. So much for legalisation lowering the crime rate. Is Paco talking?"</p><p>Just then, Finn strutted into the room.</p><p>"All right! Paco's talking!" He exclaimed. Kurt looked at Quinn and raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Did you guys plan that?"</p><p>"Finn? Plan?" Quinn laughed. "That's funny."</p><p>Finn rolled his eyes.</p><p>"All right. In the middle of his charmingly psychopathic rant about how he was going to order a hit on Puck and yours truly, he mentioned there's still 17 million dollars on the street. Looks like that truck is still out there. Saddle up, dude, we've got work to do." Finn told Quinn. Kurt raised a hand.</p><p>"Woah! First, Finn, go see the City Attorney. He left you six messages."</p><p>Quinn furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.</p><p>"Why does he want to talk to Finn?" She asked. Kurt shrugged.</p><p>"Wild guess, the astronomical rise in lawsuits filed against our fair city since Finn joined the force."</p><p>Quinn looked at him.</p><p>"Hey, look. If you're gonna get reamed out, the least I can do is come with you. I mean, you took a cattle prod for me today."</p><p>"Enjoy your Girls night. I got this." Finn said. "If I can handle Paco, I can handle Hiram Berry."</p><p>"That's Mr. City Attorney to you!" Kurt stated. Finn rolled his eyes.</p><p>"You got it!"</p><p>Once Finn was gone, Kurt turned back to Finn.</p><p>"He took a cattle prod for you?" He asked, amazed. Quinn nodded and Kurt whistled. "I wouldn't have done that for you."</p><p>"No, you wouldn't have."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"You know, you didn't have to call my boss." Finn remarked. Hiram shrugged.</p><p>"It got you here." He replied.</p><p>"You can't keep avoiding me." He said. "And not because I'm your boss's boss. Because we're family, Finn."</p><p>That's right. The City Attorney and Finn had a much deeper relationship than anyone realised: Hiram Berry's late daughter was actually Rachel Berry, Finn's ex-wife. Hiram was his father-in-law! Hiram poured two glasses of scotch and handed one to Finn.</p><p>"I know." Finn replied. "Thank you." He said, taking the drink and clinking their glasses together.</p><p>"Leroy misses you." Hiram stated. "He wants you to come for Sunday dinner."</p><p>Finn sighed.</p><p>"I appreciate that. Um… This Sunday's just not a great day for me unfortunately though. You know."</p><p>"From what I see, it doesn't look like any of your days are good ones. Leroy's making Rachel's favourite."</p><p>"Fettuccine Alfredo." Finn remarked, taking a sip of his drink. Hiram nodded. He finished his drink and stood up. "Thank you. Look, I got to run. I… uh… got paperwork and stuff to catch up on."</p><p>"Finn. She wouldn't want you to be alone." Hiram said, gently. Finn looked up and faced him.</p><p>"Wasn't my first choice either, Hiram. Thank Leroy for the invite, would you?</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Hey, hey, hey!" Quinn exclaimed, walking up to Santana. Back in their youth, they both were cheerleaders and therefore party girls but now, they were having their first girls night in over 4 month. Santana smiled at her friend.</p><p>"Hey, Q!"</p><p>The two of them drove to a restaurant. It wasn't a booming loud club, but it wasn't a dead restaurant either: a perfect one for the two of them. After grabbing their drinks from the bar, Quinn and Santana sat in a booth to avoid being hit on and they just caught up. Santana spent 15 minutes telling Quinn about a girl she had recently started talking to. Santana was openly gay and had been since high school and her proudness about who she was was one of the things Quinn loved about her. Soon, the conversation flipped around.</p><p>"So, Quinn, any guys in your life?" Santana asked. Quinn shook her head.</p><p>"Um… nah, not really." Quinn replied. Santana raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Really? Not even that cute partner of yours? Finn?"</p><p>Quinn laughed.</p><p>"There's not enough money in the world." She replied. Santana raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Why not? He's funny. He's smart. And word on the grapevine is that he took a bullet for you."</p><p>Quinn looked down.</p><p>"Actually, it's two bullets and a cattle prod but that's not the point. He lost his wife and his child less than a year ago. I can't even imagine what he's going through right now. If I lost Alex tomorrow, I would probably kill myself and to add the death of a spouse as well… I don't know how he gets up every morning. The most I can do is just be there for him."</p><p>Santana nodded.</p><p>"Yeah, I get it. But just don't let playing mom to everyone prevent you from finding your own loved one."</p><p>Suddenly, Quinn's phone buzzed. When she looked at it, her eyes widened.</p><p>"Oh, that's Sue." She said. "She just texted me 9-9-9. She wouldn't use that code unless there was something seriously wrong."</p><p>Santana nodded.</p><p>"Go. Go head, Quinn. We have other nights."</p><p>Quinn stood up.</p><p>"Cool. So we'll do this tomorrow? I'll tell the waiter we're leaving?"</p><p>"Oh no! YOU'RE leaving. I have a bottle of wine… and a babysitter."</p><p>"I respect that." Quinn laughed, before hugging her and hurrying out the restaurant. Quinn sped over to Sue's house and knocked on the door.</p><p>"Who is it?" Sue shouted.</p><p>"Quinn!" She shouted back. The door clicked open shortly after and Sue invited her in.</p><p>"Thanks for coming." Sue said. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"You sent up the bat signal so I'm here. What's up?"</p><p>"We need to talk." Sue said. Quinn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Sue… talk? I just skipped out on Girls night with Santana. Maybe we can get together tomorrow, have a beer, talk."</p><p>"Tomorrow's too late. Come here." Sue murmured, leading Quinn through the house and into the garage. There, in the garage, was the armoured truck that went missing, with presumably the 17 million side. Quinn sighed and turned back to Sue.</p><p>"Let's talk…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn walked into the precinct breakroom and inserted a few coins into the machine. A bag of cheese puffs fell out of the machine and Finn picked them up.</p><p>"Nice dinner." Someone behind him remarked. Finn turned to see Dr. Pillsbury sitting at the break room table, eating a gigantic sandwich. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Yeah. Yours looks better." Finn commented.</p><p>"Mm. Doesn't it?" She remarked. A weird expression was on Finn's face and Dr. Pillsbury raised an eyebrow. "What?" She asked.</p><p>"Just it's a mighty big sandwich for such a tiny lady."</p><p>"I have the metabolism of a hummingbird. Want half?"</p><p>"No thanks." Finn replied.</p><p>"Okay. Keep that offer between us. People will think I'm going soft and I have a reputation to protect."</p><p>Finn's eyes widened when a plan clicked into place. He snatched the other half of the sandwich from Dr. Pillsbury.</p><p>"On second thought…" He stated.</p><p>"Hey!" Dr. Pillsbury exclaimed.</p><p>"Thanks." Finn winked before jogging away. However, rather than eating the sandwich, Finn walked into the holding cell. He went straight to Paco's cell, which was a joint cell with a couple of people.</p><p>"Paco, my brother! What's up, <em>ese</em>?" Finn exclaimed. "Look, I'm sorry about the wait. The traffic to the west side was a bitch. But I got the sandwich I promised you."</p><p>"What the hell are you talking about?" Paco snapped.</p><p>"A Godmother's with the works. Extra pepperoncinis. Did I screw it up? Was it no pepperoncinis?"</p><p>One of the other inmates stood up and stood over Paco.</p><p>"This cop bringing you room service?" He snapped to Paco, presuming that Paco was being a snitch."</p><p>"Man, I don't know this guy. I don't know nothing about a sandwich. Come on, man!" Paco spat, slightly desperately.</p><p>"Paco! Now, I am a man of my word. We had a deal. You cooperate with the investigation, I bring your beloved Godmother, I…"</p><p>Paco lunged at Finn but two uniformed officers immediately stood in the way.</p><p>"Get these guys out of here." Finn told them, gesturing to the other inmates. Once they were gone, Finn turned to Paco.</p><p>"Sit down." He growled.</p><p>"Hey. You put a snitch jacket on me! You're gonna get me shanked!" Paco cried.</p><p>"Well I guess you better start talking, or I'm gonna personally deliver you a basket of muffins every day at chow."</p><p>Paco looked around and sighed.</p><p>"What do you want to know?" He snapped.</p><p>"Where's the money?" Finn murmured.</p><p>"I have to clue."</p><p>Finn smirked.</p><p>"All right. It's gonna be bran muffins, to keep your regular!"</p><p>Paco shook his head.</p><p>"Look… I zapped those pot store fools for an hour. They swore they didn't have the money."</p><p>"You believed them?"</p><p>"Well, they copped to stealing the dough, but they said someone else stole it off them."</p><p>"Names?"</p><p>"They didn't know. Said no one else was in on the heist. No one even knew the money was stolen except the… the driver they jacked."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Chapter 13</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Tom got sick." Sue murmured. Her and Quinn were sitting in the living room of Sue's house and Sue was explaining herself. "And the doctors… they all said there was no hope. Course, the insurance wouldn't cover it, so I mortgaged the house, I cashed in my pension. And I am wiped out."</p><p>"That's why you were driving the armoured truck for 14 bucks an hour, huh?"</p><p>"Until those morons nearly killed me with a garbage truck."</p><p>"So you knew it was them all along?"</p><p>"No, not at first. I was pretty shook up. But in the hospital, I was trying to think of anything, and I… I've been making pickups from those idiots for years, and I recognised their shoes."</p><p>"So you just went to the house, found the truck, and just drove it away?"</p><p>"It was so easy." Sue laughed. "Then I heard about what happened to those guys, and I… I'm scared, Quinn. I screwed up."</p><p>"Yeah, Sue. You did." Quinn replied.</p><p>"So, I, um… I figured, you might as well take me in." Sue said, holding out her arms for Quinn to slap the cuffs on. Suddenly, there was a clutter outside and Quinn immediately drew her gun. She tiptoed into the garage.</p><p>"LAPD! Come out with your hands up!"</p><p>Surprisingly, it wasn't a criminal that popped out. It was Finn Hudson. He grinned and waved at her. She sighed and relaxed.</p><p>"Hi, Quinn." He said.</p><p>"What the hell are you doing here?" Quinn snapped.</p><p>"I could ask you the same question." He remarked. He patted the side of the truck. "Sue's new ride?"</p><p>Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Okay, I should've called you before I came here." She relented. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Look, it's okay. She's your old T.O. I'm with you on this, okay?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Maybe I can pull some strings, get the feds to take your case." Quinn suggested. Finn, Quinn and Sue were standing in the kitchen, discussing the case. "You get a chance to hang out with Bernie Madoff instead of gangbangers down in county lockup."</p><p>"Well, all right. Yeah, I appreciate that. Let's go. Take me in."</p><p>Quinn walked towards Sue but Finn stopped her.</p><p>"A… minute of your time, Quinn. Just one second, Sue."</p><p>Finn dragged Quinn to the corner of the room.</p><p>"We can't do this." He whispered. "She won't last 5 minutes in lockup. Do I need to remind you of our dear friend Paco?"</p><p>"She stole 17 million, Finn. I can't turn a blind eye to that."</p><p>"I agree. We need to take him in."</p><p>Quinn nodded.</p><p>"So… same page."</p><p>"Tomorrow." Finn finished. "Tonight, we just take the money in. It's our only shot. Q, if we go by the book on this, she'll be dead in 24 hours."</p><p>Suddenly, a voice came from the other room.</p><p>"I know what you guys are thinking, and I can't let you do it." Sue said. "You're not gonna throw your careers away for me."</p><p>"Well, to be honest, Sue, I don't have much of a career anyway."</p><p>"Look… I wouldn't have made it a day on the streets without you. I owe you." Quinn said. Sue shook her head though.</p><p>"You don't owe me. It's the job. Do your job, Quinn."</p><p>Quinn thought for a moment then looked up.</p><p>"We're gonna take the money in." Quinn decided. "We're coming back for you tomorrow."</p><p>Quinn walked out the room and Finn followed her. Just before Finn left the room, Sue held him back.</p><p>"Hey. That woman's solid gold. You take care of him, you understand?"</p><p>Finn smiled.</p><p>"Yes, ma'am. You can count on it."</p><p>Quinn laughed.</p><p>"Kiss of death." She remarked. Finn chuckled.</p><p>"Look, Sue, normally I would say head to Mexico. But North might be better for your situation. Good luck."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"I should have never let you talk me into this." Quinn snapped. Finn and Quinn were driving the armoured van back to the LAPD and in the meantime, Sue was going to 'escape.'</p><p>Q, come on, it was the only way."</p><p>"I mean, I love the woman but she stole 150 bricks of cold hard cash."</p><p>"149." Finn replied.</p><p>"No, it was 150." Quinn replied. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"Trust me. Let's say 149."</p><p>Quinn glared at him.</p><p>"Damn it, Finn, giving Sue money wasn't part of the plan!"</p><p>"Uh, in fairness, I didn't have a plan." Finn drawled.</p><p>"Yes, we did!" Quinn exclaimed. "We were gonna turn in the money and give Sue a few hours' head start."</p><p>"No, that was your plan, okay? My plan is driving this to some beach somewhere and settling down like Butch and Sundance."</p><p>"Butch and Sundance? Do you know that…?"</p><p>Suddenly, Quinn's phone started ringing. She saw that it was Sue and she answered the phone.</p><p>"Sue, you'd better be halfway to Vancouver by now."</p><p>"Quinn, I'm sorry." Sue mumbled. Quinn could immediately hear that something was wrong. Sue's voice was trembling.</p><p>"Sorry for what?" Quinn asked. With a machete pressed against her neck and her arms tied behind her back, Sue uttered a single sentence.</p><p>"I'm sorry, but I'm gonna need that money back…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The two parties decided on a drop off. They were going to meet on opposite sides of a bridge and exchange Sue for the money. Finn and Quinn parked on one side of the bridge and they gritted their teeth. On the other side of the bridge were way more gang members than they agreed upon. To top it off, the LAPD had no idea about any of this. 6 cartel members dragged Sue out the car and stood with her in the middle of the bridge.</p><p>"This was supposed to be an even exchange. Sue for the money. Two of them, two of us. But surprise, surprise. Gangbangers suck at math. I'm counting six." Quinn remarked.</p><p>"And a few more behind us." Finn remarked, looking at 3 unmarked vehicles behind them through his mirror. "Well, by my calculations, we're severely outnumbered and outgunned."</p><p>"So how do you want to play this, Finn?"</p><p>Finn smirked.</p><p>"Are you asking me if I got a plan?" Finn asked. Quinn chuckled.</p><p>"Against my better judgement, I am." Quinn replied. Finn nodded.</p><p>"Good, 'cause I got one."</p><p>"Okay, good, what is it?"</p><p>"It's better if I just show you." Finn replied. "Buckle up."</p><p>Quinn furrowed her eyebrows.</p><p>"Why am I putting my seat belt on?" She asked. Her eyes then widened when she saw him. "Why are you putting on YOUR seatbelt?"</p><p>Finn winked at her and floored the accelerator and towards Sue and the cartel members.</p><p>"I do not approve of this plan!" Quinn shouted. "Let's call for backup!"</p><p>"Go ahead and call for backup, Q. I'm not sure they're gonna get here in time."</p><p>Immediately, the armoured truck was sprayed with automatic machine gun fire and Sue used the distraction to start running away. Finn and Quinn bulldozed towards the line of gang cars, the bulletproof vehicle immune to the rapidfire of bullets.</p><p>"FINN!" Quinn screamed. Finn didn't slow down though. He crashed straight through the cars and kept driving. "IS THIS STILL YOUR PLAN?!" She yelled. Finn nodded.</p><p>"They're following the money and not Sue." He shouted back as the tires squealed and Finn took a sharp turn right, crashing into a mailbox in the process. The back of the truck made contact with it and fell open, money streaming out. Bullets kept firing relentlessly at the truck but it didn't matter. Finn and Quinn kept driving as the money fluttered down from the air and into the arms of confused but delighted citizens. Quinn suddenly felt something slide by her leg and she looked down to see a shotgun there. Quinn smirked and picked it up. Finn chuckled as Quinn cocked the gun and fired at the incoming cartel members. Suddenly, the truck swerved and Quinn was forced to stop shooting and get back in the truck.</p><p>"Could you not? I'm trying to shoot here!" She shouted. Finn smirked.</p><p>"Oh, I'm sorry, ma'am but did you not see that the seat belt light is illuminated?!"</p><p>Then, disaster struck. One of the cartel members shot the front left tire of the truck, causing it to spin out of control and flip upside down…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Meanwhile, back at the precinct, Kurt walked through the bullpen.</p><p>"Finn and Quinn in yet?" Kurt asked Tina.</p><p>"Not yet, cap." She replied. "Maybe traffic."</p><p>"Well, let me know when they deign to make an appearance."</p><p>Suddenly, the dispatcher's voice echoed through the precinct.</p><p>"Attention, all units, shots fired. Armored truck crashed into multiple vehicles then overturned. Heavily armed suspects approaching. Requesting immediate backup."</p><p>Kurt closed his eyes. He didn't need to hear the officers' names to know who was there.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn groaned in pain as they sat in the overturned vehicle.</p><p>"Well, this worked out well, huh?" Quinn snapped.</p><p>"If we'd have stuck with my original idea, we'd be on a beach somewhere, sipping drinks like Butch and Sundance." Finn remarked.</p><p>"Butch and fucking Sundance? You know they both died at the end of that movie!" Quinn spat.</p><p>"Really?"</p><p>"Yeah!"</p><p>"Oh. I never saw the film."</p><p>"No, of course you didn't!"</p><p>"Okay, now you're cranky. I don't want to be around cranky Fabray."</p><p>"Really? How can you tell?" She snapped, sarcastically. Finn then looked in the mirror and saw the Los Alvos gang staring at them. He waved.</p><p>"Hi Los Alvos! How are you guys today?" He exclaimed. Quinn scowled at him.</p><p>"Great. Piss them off while they surround us."</p><p>Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Well, I mean, they're gonna kill us anyway, Q."</p><p>Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"You're a terrible person in the foxhole." She snapped. Finn shrugged and took out a gun.</p><p>"Maybe. But… I'm pretty good at shooting my way out. You ready?"</p><p>"On three." Quinn replied.</p><p>"Hey, Quinn? Don't make it easy for them." Finn murmured.</p><p>"Hell no." Quinn replied.</p><p>"One… two… three!"</p><p>They kicked their way out of the windshield and started firing. With her shotgun, Quinn took out one of them and Finn took out three with his pistol. However, eventually, they both ran out of ammo.</p><p>"You out?" Finn asked Quinn, hiding behind the car with her.</p><p>"Yup. You?"</p><p>"Yeah. So what was your plan again?"</p><p>Suddenly, the sound of police sirens cut through the air and LAPD officers appeared on all sides. Quinn turned to Finn.</p><p>"Did you call them?" She asked, astonished. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Every plan has a backup plan." Finn replied, simply. "Literally. I called for BACKUP."</p><p>Quinn threw her arms around him in relief. The two of them sighed and laughed in relief. They live to fight another day. The officers arrested the whole gang. Finn turned to Quinn.</p><p>"So look, this time we went with my plan. Next time, we'll go with your plan. Partnership."</p><p>"Partnership." She laughed.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"This is the fun part. We have an opportunity to give a thankful citizen her money back." Finn smiled. Suddenly, a police file dropped in Finn's lap.</p><p>"Angela's head was just found in a garbage dump in Tijuana." Kurt informed him. Finn and Quinn shuddered.</p><p>"Well, we can be in TJ by midnight and interface with the Mexican authorities." Quinn offered. Kurt shook his head.</p><p>"No. We're off the case. It's the DEA's jurisdiction now. You guys recovered the money, closed two homicides, but if you want to keep going, there's still one open case."</p><p>"What's that?" They asked, simultaneously.</p><p>"Fugitive recovery. Sue Sylvester. Any ideas where she might be?"</p><p>"Mm-mm, I ain't seen her." Finn said.</p><p>"I don't know. It's like she disappeared." Quinn added.</p><p>"Yeah, it's like she's a genie." Finn remarked.</p><p>"She was just gone." Quinn stated. Kurt raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"The two of you agreeing with each other… now that's scary." Kurt remarked.</p><p>Quinn and Finn shrugged and left the room swiftly. Finn walked to the elevator and went down a floor to the therapy office. He walked inside and Dr. Pillsbury looked up.</p><p>"Do you know how to knock?" She asked. Finn tossed something to her and she caught it. It was a sandwich.</p><p>"I owed you a sandwich." Finn said. "Well, half a sandwich. There you go." He said.</p><p>"Headed home?" She asked. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"Nah. A lot of paperwork."</p><p>Dr. Pillsbury sighed.</p><p>"Finn, you can hide in the office. You can hide in a bottle. You can shoot your TV, get high, whatever. You don't have to talk to me. But do you talk to anyone?"</p><p>"Well…"</p><p>"Your father-in-law?" Dr. Pillsbury asked. Finn's eyes widened and he looked at her. She shrugged.</p><p>"I do due diligence on all my clients." She explained. "He must miss her, too."</p><p>Finn shook his head.</p><p>"Talking to him isn't what I need right now."</p><p>"It may not be what you need… but it may be what he needs."</p><p>On Sunday, Finn sat in his car outside Hiram and Leroy Berry's house. He had a bottle of wine in his hand and he watched as the family chatted and socialised. Finn was pulled into a flashback to the first time he met them…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>
  <em>Finn and Rachel walked onto the front porch, hand in hand. Finn was wearing some of his smartest clothing, a white, button down shirt and formal trousers that had absolutely no stains on them. Rachel was wearing a gorgeous white sundress. As they stood on the front porch, Finn fumbled with his tie nervously. Rachel beamed at him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Relax, Finn. They're gonna love you." Rachel said, wrapping her arms around his neck.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Well, if I was your daddies, there ain't a man on Earth to be good enough for my baby girl."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Rachel giggled.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Well, you are most definitely not my father. Thank God."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Rachel pressed her lips against him. After they pulled apart, Rachel pointed to the bottle of wine in Finn's hands.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"You didn't have to bring a gift." Rachel said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Hey, it's how I was raised. You show a man respect, then you earn his trust."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Texas Charm." Rachel laughed. Finn winked.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Better get used to it."</em>
</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn took out his phone and looked at his wallpaper - a picture of Rachel. He kissed the picture and murmured to her.</p><p>"I'm sorry, baby. Not tonight…"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Chapter 14</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"All right, let's see what we got here."</p><p>At the back of the jewelry store, the owner was conducting an interview for a new security guard. The man</p><p>"Purple heat, bronze star, three tours of duty. Never thought I'd be looking at the resume of a Navy SEAL for a security guard position." He remarked. The man opposite him, Chad Jackson, shrugged.</p><p>"Do you have anything to drink?" Jackson asked. The man nodded.</p><p>"Sure, uh… bottled water? Coffee?" The owner of the store asked.</p><p>"Milk." Jackson replied. "Please."</p><p>"Milk?"</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>"I think we have some half and half."</p><p>Jackson smiled.</p><p>"That's perfect, thank you."</p><p>The man nodded and looked back at the resume before him.</p><p>"You know, looking at this resume, I… I think you're overqualified for a security guard position."</p><p>Jackson shook his head.</p><p>"No. I'm exactly qualified for a security guard position."</p><p>"Well, we've already got a full-time guard, Wayne. Don't really think we need more protection." The man said, pointing at the guard behind Jackson. Jackson raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"You have Wayne?" He laughed. "So everything's protected here?"</p><p>Wayne put a hand on his shoulder.</p><p>"All right, buddy."</p><p>Suddenly, with moves like lightning, Jackson grabbed Wayne into a headlock.</p><p>"You know, you don't know how Wayne would react if something like this were to happen." Jackson snapped and then he used Wayne's head as a hammer and he smashed the first case of jewelry. He used Wayne's head to smash every one of the cases. "I bet you guys are kicking yourself for not having that extra security." Jackson remarked. The whole store was in shock and they were petrified. "I mean, you got a lot of really nice stuff here. Someone could just reach in and take it." He said, taking out a couple of necklaces and putting them around his neck.</p><p>"Please, just… just take whatever you want and… and leave." The shop owner stammered. Jackson turned to him.</p><p>"Keys." He demanded.</p><p>"God, to the… to the vault." The man trembled. "It's a combination."</p><p>"No, to the car." Jackson snapped. Then, grabbing the half and half milk and the keys from the man, before storming out of the store.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Where's Finn?" Kurt asked, walking into the conference room. Dr. Pillsbury and Quinn were both sitting there but Finn was nowhere to be found. "Does he ever show up for meetings on time? Quinn, where is he?"</p><p>"What are you asking me for? I don't know where that man is. I don't know how old he is. I don't know why he tucks one pant leg into the boot and not the other. He doesn't tell me anything."</p><p>Kurt then looked at Dr. Pillsbury and she chuckled.</p><p>"Do you think it's any different with me?" She laughed. Kurt sighed.</p><p>"Moving on, I wanted to show all three of you this, but the two of you will have to do."</p><p>They turned to look at the TV at the corner of Kurt's office.</p><p>"A veteran robbed a jewelry store in Brentwood this morning after an interview went south."</p><p>They watched the store's security cameras and watched as Jackson beat up the guard, stole the jewelry and left. They shuddered every time Jackson smashed a glass case with Wayne's head.</p><p>"His name's Chad Jackson." Kurt informed them. "He left his resume behind. Navy SEAL Lieutenant Commander. Sniper."</p><p>"I'm guessing he didn't get the job." Quinn remarked. Dr. Pillsbury studied the footage again and commented on it.</p><p>"Hair-trigger reactions. Oblivious to social norms. Playful in his display of violent and aggressive behavior. Inappropriate response to otherwise dangerous circumstances. Unafraid of consequences. Remind you of anyone?"</p><p>"All that's missing is the mustache." Quinn chuckled.</p><p>"And the police reports say that when Mr. Jackson left the store, he gave a 1000 dollar necklace to a homeless man down the block." Kurt added.</p><p>"The Robin Hood of Brentwood." Quinn remarked.</p><p>"Yeah, but this Robin Hood also put a man in the hospital, stole a car, and did thousands more in property damage." Kurt replied.</p><p>"Did he leave an address on his resume?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"He did, but it's a P.O. Box." Kurt said.</p><p>When veterans return stateside, they typically have psychiatrists assigned to them by their local veteran's hospital." Dr. Pillsbury stated. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"I'll check the VA hospital." She replied. Kurt nodded.</p><p>"Find Finn and then find Jackson. We can't have a lunatic ex-SEAL running around the city wreaking havoc."</p><p>While Kurt was talking, Quinn looked out the window and her jaw dropped. Finn was on the balcony doing pull ups. But he wasn't using a bar. He was dangling off the edge of the building and was grabbing the ledge as his pull up bar. Quinn turned back to Kurt.</p><p>"You mean two of them?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>An hour later, Finn and Quinn pulled up at the Mid-City Veterans Hospital and they walked into Jackson's psychiatrist's office. The man didn't have much to say to them.</p><p>"Getting guys like Jackson to open up is like pulling teeth." The therapist explained.</p><p>"So you're more of a dentist than a psychiatrist?" Quinn joked. Neither Finn nor the therapist laughed. "My sister loves these jokes." Quinn said. "Um, from your experience, what is the best way to earn the trust of someone like… like that?"</p><p>"Vets need a lot of time and space. Patience is the key." The therapist replied. Finn rolled his eyes and turned to the therapist.</p><p>"So, what kind of treatment was Jackson getting here?" Finn asked.</p><p>"He was part of a group therapy of other vets suffering PTSD."</p><p>"Any medications?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Uh… just antidepressants." The therapist said. Finn turned to the man and smirked.</p><p>"Antidepressants and group therapy?! Wow. You guys are pulling out all the stops, aren't you?" He remarked, sarcastically. The man glared at him.</p><p>"We do our best to help veterans readjust back home. Unfortunately, some of them come back extremely damaged. They don't want therapy. They just want to numb the pain."</p><p>Finn looked down. Although he normally ignored everything, that did make it through his thick skull. He knew that the man was basically describing him. Quinn obviously noticed too and she tried to help him out by changing the subject.</p><p>"In your sessions, did Jackson ever say anything that may explain what happened?" She asked.</p><p>"Not really." The man replied. "Jackson was a good guy. He got along with the others. Funny. But with anyone who's been through what Jackson has, there's always the worry that he might… break."</p><p>"Break?" Finn snapped. "Break? You mind unpacking that psychiatric term for us there, doc?"</p><p>The therapist nodded.</p><p>"Jackson's trained with the best. He's seen things that most people can't even imagine. If he's out there, without any counseling, without any help whatsoever, that could be a very dangerous scenario."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Jackson stormed into a pharmacy and he walked straight over to the pharmacist. He took out a vial of pills from his pocket and handed it to her.</p><p>"Hey. I really need to know what this is." Jackson demanded.</p><p>"I'm sorry, I can't determine the medication based on a vial with no label. Maybe you can call your doctor and have them…"</p><p>"I DID! He's not calling me back!" Jackson shouted. "Will you just look again, please?"</p><p>The lady looked at the pill and shook her head.</p><p>"I don't know." She stammered.</p><p>"Wh-what are you saying? You've never seen this pill before?" Jackson yelled. "You've handled thousands of pills in however many years you've worked here, and you know in TWO SECONDS that you've never seen this before?! LOOK CLOSER!"</p><p>"Sir, you need to calm down." The pharmacist stated. "Security!"</p><p>Jackson shook his head.</p><p>"No, I'm sorry. This will just take a second." He snapped and then he jumped over the counter and started rummaging through the various cabinets. Eventually, security made it over.</p><p>"Hey! Stop!" The security guard shouted, cocking his gun. "Don't move another inch."</p><p>Jackson wiggled his hips and smirked.</p><p>"Um… I just moved like four inches and you didn't do anything. Something tells me you're not going to." He said, lunging at the man…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn walked out of the psychiatrist's office moments later and Quinn looked at him as they walked to the car.</p><p>"Hey, did you talk to anyone when you got back?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Didn't need to." Finn replied.</p><p>"I guess you were one of the lucky ones." Quinn remarked.</p><p>"Something like that."</p><p>"You know, I was going through Jackson's file, and I saw that he served overseas for 8 years. How long were you there?"</p><p>"It's not really a competition, Q." Finn replied.</p><p>"So he served more time than you?" Quinn laughed. Finn didn't answer. He served MUCH longer than Jackson did but Finn, like all former SEALs, didn't brag about it. "Look, I couldn't tell if Dr. Cox was talking about Jackson or you back there. Is there anything else you can tell me about this Navy SEAL we're trying to arrest?"</p><p>"Quinn, what do you want me to say?" Finn spat. "That he snapped? I mean, it certainly sounds like it. Is that what this is? You're afraid I'm gonna do the same thing?"</p><p>"Listen, I'm just saying, you would have more insight on this than I would."</p><p>Finn didn't answer. Their silence was interrupted by Quinn's phone ringing. She answered it.</p><p>"Hey, Tina, what's up? What you got for us?"</p><p>"There's a robbery on Cahuenga and Magnolia. Suspect matches Jackson's description. We're on our way now."</p><p>Quinn started the car and they sped towards the destination.</p><p>"Is he still there?" Quinn asked Tina.</p><p>"First responder says his car is still in the parking lot." Tina replied.</p><p>"No one goes in until we get there." Finn snapped.</p><p>They pulled up to the market moments later and Finn and Quinn dived out of the car and sprinted over to the other officers present. Tina and Puck joined them briefly after. Puck had transferred permanently from the Gang Unit to Robbery-Homicide a couple of weeks ago.</p><p>"So, what have we got?" Quinn asked Tina.</p><p>"That's the suspect's stolen vehicle over there." She said, pointing to one of the cars in the lot. "He's still inside. He assaulted a guard and took his gun."</p><p>"Any hostages?" Finn asked.</p><p>"It's hard to tell. He killed the lights in there." Tina said. Quinn nodded and turned to Finn.</p><p>"How do you want to handle this, Finn?" Quinn asked. Finn took a deep breath and turned to her.</p><p>"Let me go in alone." Finn suggested. He then turned to the rest of the officers. "Everyone else stays out here!"</p><p>As Finn walked towards the market, Quinn grabbed his arm.</p><p>"Hey, hey, hey. I got your back on this." She said. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"Q, this guy's a trained killer. If he, for one second, feels threatened he's gonna kill us both."</p><p>"You can talk to him but I'm going in." Quinn stated. "I'll just hang back."</p><p>Finn sighed. Puck then ran up to him and took off his bulletproof vest and handed it to Finn.</p><p>"Finn, take my vest." He said. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"If he's gonna kill me, a head shot will do. Guys, watch the front!"</p><p>With that, Quinn and Finn walked into the market. As they walked in, Puck followed them but Tina held him back.</p><p>"Puck, what are you doing?" Tina asked. Puck shrugged and pulled out his weapon.</p><p>"They said watch the front. I'm gonna go in and I'm gonna watch the front…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn walked into the pharmacy and he immediately noticed the unconscious security guard and a pile of random pills next to him. As Quinn started to walk further into the market, Finn grabbed her and pulled her back.</p><p>"Stay back." He demanded, quietly. Quinn groaned and nodded. Finn, unarmed and not wearing a vest, walked further into the market. He walked into the beverages aisle and saw a couple of milk cartons lying open and empty on the ground. Peering around the corner, Finn saw Jackson sitting on the floor and drinking a carton of milk. He slowly walked over to him.</p><p>"Hey bud." Finn said. "Might be better off just stealing ya a whole cow."</p><p>Jackson shrugged.</p><p>"Fallujah or Kandahar?" Finn asked.</p><p>"Both." Jackson replied. He finally looked up and looked at Finn. "You serve?"</p><p>Finn nodded.</p><p>"Only easy day was yesterday." Finn replied. Jackson grinned.</p><p>"Hooyah!" He exclaimed.</p><p>"Hooyah." Finn murmured, quietly.</p><p>"Oh, look at us!" Jackson remarked. "To SEALs, two sides of the same coin."</p><p>Finn nodded and smiled.</p><p>"I'm gonna have to take that weapon from you, though." He said, pointing to the pistol in Jackson's hands. Jackson chuckled.</p><p>"Yeah, that's not gonna happen." Jackson murmured.</p><p>"I got a lot of folks outside that are on my side." Finn commented.</p><p>"Doesn't sound like a fair fight." Jackson replied.</p><p>"For which one of us?" Finn laughed. He knew better than anyone that one SEAL was probably stronger than every single officer outside combined.</p><p>"I'll tell you what." Jackson declared. "I'll turn myself in. I'll even let you get the collar. But I gotta finish my mission first."</p><p>"What's the mission?"</p><p>Suddenly, there was a squeak of a shoe from the corner of the room. It was extremely quiet but loud enough for both Finn and Jackson to hear it. They spun around and saw Puck peering around the corner, his gun raised. Finn looked down in annoyance. He already knew exactly what was going to happen. Sure enough, moments later, Jackson fired two shots, not at Puck's head but at his chest, causing Puck to be sent flying backwards but not permanently injured. Jackson then bolted from the store.</p><p>"You idiot!" Finn shouted at Puck as the ex-SEAL chased the other ex-SEAL through the market. Jackson sprinted through the back of the store, flipping over anything he could find to create obstacles for Finn. Finn easily hurdled over them but his speed was decreased because of it. Jackson then made it to the electrical room and started climbing up a small ladder that was half-hidden in the corner of the room. Finn followed him and the two of them sprinted across the roof of the market. When they reached the end of the roof, Jackson suddenly leapt off the roof and onto the roof of a passing truck like he was spiderman. From there, he easily got away. Right before he did, Jackson turned and saluted to Finn. Finn panted. It had been a while since he had faced someone like a SEAL and he had forgotten how insane some of the stunts they could do were. When Finn got back to the ground, Quinn ran over to him.</p><p>"DID HE JUST… HOW THE HELL DID HE DO THAT?!" She shouted. Finn ran a hand through his hair.</p><p>"He's crazier than I am."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Chapter 15</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>That night, Finn took a swig of alcohol as he read through Jackson's file again. He knew exactly what the man was going through and if anything, he considered the man a victim not a villain. The man had sacrificed his mental health for his country and he was now being chased down by and villainized by the very people he fought so hard to protect. Suddenly, the elevator doors dinged open and Dr. Pillsbury walked out and over to him. She sat down on the chair opposite him.</p><p>"Heard about Jackson's leap off a building. I was surprised you didn't jump after him." She remarked.</p><p>"Me too. I'm not sure what held me back." He responded.</p><p>"Maybe you're starting to like it around here. You know, nice weather, good partner, cases worth burning the midnight oil for. It'll grow on you."</p><p>Dr. Pillsbury then pointed to the flask in Finn's hand.</p><p>"I'll have a drink." She said. Finn raised an eyebrow and she shrugged. "I'm off the clock."</p><p>Finn nodded and passed her a mug and he poured her half the flask. He took a deep breath.</p><p>"You know, when I was in SEAL training, we did these… uh… HALO jumps. High Altitude Low Opening. You don't pull the ripcord till you're a couple hundred feet from your impact zone. Terrifying. Well, at least, I was terrified. Then you do it a hundred times and it becomes just another day at the ranch. But still, in the back of your mind, there's this thing that's telling you, you know, this is crazy. And Jackson… it's like he lost that, you know? No hesitation, no fear whatsoever."</p><p>Dr. Pillsbury wore a faint smile on her face and she raised a hand.</p><p>"Did you just admit that you know when you're doing something crazy?"</p><p>"That's what makes it fun."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Meanwhile, Quinn was going into the forensics lab to question Artie about the pills they found on scene. Jackson had left them when he bolted and they were eager to find out what they were.</p><p>"Hey Blacula. Catch you napping on the job?" Quinn asked as she entered the forensics lab. Artie rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Just keeping it clean for you. I had our friends at regional run the pill through their mass spectrometer to separate the elements to see how they…"</p><p>"Yeah, yeah, yeah. They did the science. And…"</p><p>"The chemical compound is similar to an SSRI."</p><p>"A what?"</p><p>"Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors."</p><p>Quinn's facial expression was that of a 7 year old child being taught algebra for the first time. Artie sighed.</p><p>"Like an antidepressant prescribed for PTSD."</p><p>Quinn nodded.</p><p>"You said 'similar'?"</p><p>"There were no matches to this specific combination of ingredients currently on the market. It must have been something he got off the streets."</p><p>"So why would Jackson look for this in a pharmacy?"</p><p>Artie raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"I'm assuming that was rhetorical because <em>I'm </em>not the detective."</p><p>Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Right."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Right after this, Finn and Dr. Pillsbury were discussing their various findings. Finn had done digging into Jackson's past and he had found some interesting things.</p><p>"So, Jackson's not the only one who had this issue." He said and then handed her a file. "Here's a vet from Jackson's therapy group. Drove a 180 into a retaining wall. Dead on impact."</p><p>He then handed her another file.</p><p>"This one died cliff diving in Laguna Beach."</p><p>And another.</p><p>"And this guy in a motorcycle accident." Finn said. "I was going through Jackson's case file. A bunch of his SEAL team didn't make it back. And then all these guys at the V.A Hospital died too. I mean, it's hard enough to watch your brothers die overseas, but… you know, to find yourself all alone back home, I can't imagine."</p><p>Suddenly, an idea popped into Finn's head.</p><p>"This crazy risk override thing… could that be caused by a drug?"</p><p>"What did his doctor say he was on?" Dr. Pillsbury asked.</p><p>"Antidepressants." Finn replied. Dr. Pillsbury shook her head.</p><p>"No. That's not likely." She remarked."Jackson could've been part of a clinical trial. Before a pharmaceutical company can put a new drug on the market, they have trials before the FDA gives approval. They usually test on volunteers."</p><p>"Or use vets as guinea pigs." Finn finished. Dr. Pillsbury nodded.</p><p>"If you want to find you who's running the trial, there's usually a paper trail, but it's proprietary information. You're gonna need a good lawyer to access it."</p><p>Finn smirked.</p><p>"I may know someone.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Yo, yo, yo, yo, yo!" Finn exclaimed as he walked into the lawyer's office. She was sitting at her desk, typing furiously on her laptop, another lawyer standing over her. When Finn walked in, the other lawyer left the room swiftly.</p><p>"Finn!" Santana exclaimed, giving him a hug. Finn smiled. He pointed to the retreating man behind him.</p><p>"I'm sorry. Was I disturbing something?" Finn asked.</p><p>"Not at all." Santana replied. "So, I was reading your text and I got what you asked. I was also reading this case and I know who's involved. It must mean a lot to you, huh?"</p><p>Finn nodded.</p><p>"Yeah, it really does." Finn replied.</p><p>"Well, for what it's worth, I understand." Santana replied. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Well… and I mean this in the absolutely kindest possible way, you really don't know what it's like until you actually serve. These men sacrificed their bodies, minds and lives to the country. We trained for years alongside the same men, and we prepared to die for them. When we're on mission, every morning we wake up knowing that there's a good chance we'll die today and if we do, the last people we see will be our brothers around us. We eat together. Sleep together. Fight together. Die together. These men aren't your fellow soldiers, our your friends: they're your family. If one of you is being dragged through hell, the others are right there behind you to pull you back. It's just… it's really indescribable. I can't imagine what Jackson's going through."</p><p>Santana didn't know what to say. She just pulled him into a comforting hug. Nobody knew how much this case really meant to Finn and how much it was killing him inside. As they were hugging, there was a knock on the door and Quinn walked inside.</p><p>"Santana, I… oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realise that you had company." Quinn said. Finn then turned around to face his partner and her mouth dropped.</p><p>"F-ff-finn?" Quinn stammered. Finn nodded.</p><p>"Hey, Quinn." He waved at her. Quinn's face went from confusion to annoyance.</p><p>"Finn, could you give us a moment?" Quinn asked. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Um… Quinn, I'm here on police business." He stated, confused.</p><p>"Just… please." She snapped. Finn raised his hands in surrender and walked out the room. Once he was gone, Quinn turned to Santana and stared daggers at her.</p><p>"Seriously Santana? My partner? Is there really no one else in the city?!" Quinn shouted. Santana furrowed her eyebrows.</p><p>"Um… we weren't doing anything, Quinn. I was just doing him a favor."</p><p>"Doing him a favor? Is that what we're calling it now?" Quinn spat. Back in high school, it was just like Santana to do something like that as although Santana liked girls, she considered herself bi-sexual as she liked guys too.</p><p>"Quinn, stop!" Santana shouted. "He asked me a favor about the police case you're working on. You know… the one with the Navy SEAL?"</p><p>Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"He… he was?"</p><p>"Yeah, and he seemed like he was in a lot of pain when he asked for the favor so I wasn't about to say no." Santana snapped. "HEY FINN! GET IN HERE!" Santana called. Finn walked back into the room moments later, 8 mini muffins in his hands. Santana couldn't help but put her head in her hands and laugh.</p><p>"Finn, what's wrong with you?" She laughed. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"What? I didn't eat lunch." He responded, his mouth still full of muffin. Santana chuckled.</p><p>"Wow, I don't know which of you is more immature. You two are perfect for each other." She remarked to the two detectives. They rolled their eyes. "So, I had to pull a few strings but… here's a patent signed by Gaius Pharmaceuticals…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next morning, Finn and Quinn strutted into Gaius Pharma at the very minute the office opened. Surprisingly, Finn wasn't his usual 30 minutes late; he was actually earlier to arrive than Quinn. That as well as the look in his eye showed Quinn how much the case meant to him.</p><p>"Here to see Patricia Swinton." Quinn said to the receptionist. The receptionist nodded and picked up the phone to call her boss. As they waited, Finn turned to Quinn.</p><p>"Tell Santana thanks from me and I owe her one." Finn said. Quinn shook her head.</p><p>"No, you don't owe her one. You owe ME one." Quinn remarked. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"How's that?"</p><p>"I'm the one that broke the golden rule, by asking for a professional favor. I haven't had to do that in years. But I felt we needed it, on this."</p><p>"So why is this case any different?" Finn growled quietly. Quinn sighed.</p><p>"See, there you go again! I try to do something nice, and you just throw it back in my face!"</p><p>Finn shrugged.</p><p>"I just don't know why you'd value one case over another and then put it off on me."</p><p>"Why don't you just receive it as it's being given?"</p><p>"What is it that I'm receiving? I'm the one that asked for the god damn favor."</p><p>"Detectives." A voice said from behind them. Finn and Quinn turned to see Patricia standing there. "Should we step into my office or do you two need a minute?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Look at that. Views of the whole city. And a company pool. You must do well to afford all that." Quinn remarked as they stepped into Patricia's office and Quinn looked out a window.</p><p>"We do well." Patricia replied.</p><p>"So, we understand that Mr. Jackson was a part of a clinical trial here."</p><p>Patricia nodded.</p><p>"He was, but I need to be upfront. I can't discuss any intellectual property currently under development."</p><p>"Intellectual property?" Finn sniggered. "That the drug Jackson was on?"</p><p>"I wish I could be more helpful." She said.</p><p>"Oh, I'm sure it's just eating you up." Finn remarked, sarcastically.</p><p>"Hypothetically, what are some of the side effects of that drug?" Quinn asked, steering the conversation back to relevance. "Like, drinking milk?"</p><p>"Certain medications can elicit cravings for opioid peptides. Milk can soothe the stomach. It's really a case by case basis."</p><p>"Does the label say side effects may include I don't know… jumping off of buildings?" Finn asked. "Or robbing jewelry stores?"</p><p>"If you're implying that his criminal behavior is a result of the medication… you're reaching, Detective."</p><p>"Am I?" Finn asked. The two locked eyes for a moment, neither of them willing to stand down. Eventually, the doctor sighed.</p><p>"It's a sad truth, but most of the patients who take part in these trials are broken, long before they take the medication. They're beyond our scope."</p><p>"Ms. Swinton, could you provide us with a list of the other patients involved in this trial? We'd like to talk to them." Quinn asked. Patricia didn't respond. Quinn sighed. "Please. Chad Jackson is still out there. We're just trying to help him."</p><p>"Dr. Logan Cox provided us with the subjects for our testing." Patricia eventually said. Finn sat up suddenly.</p><p>"Dr. Cox from the V.A hospital?" He asked, remembering the man well from a couple of days ago.</p><p>"Yes. He administered the medication to all of the patients in his group therapy."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Dr. Cox said he only prescribed antidepressants to Jackson." Quinn said as they walked out of the office. "He failed to mention the trials."</p><p>"Lied to our faces. Piece of shit." Finn snapped. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"Yeah, well, I grabbed one of the Doctor's business cards for you. Saw how you guys got along. Figured he'd be someone you can open up to."</p><p>Finn ignored her but he took the card and dialled the number on it. The phone was answered moments later by a voice they knew only too well.</p><p>"Hello?" The man said. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Um… Artie?" Finn asked, dumbfounded. "Are you with Dr. Cox right now?"</p><p>"Yeah, um… Doctor Cox can't come to the phone right now. He's a little… dead right now…"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Chapter 16</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Dr. Cox was shot in the back of the head at close range while walking to his car. 9mm shell casing was recovered at the scene, consistent with the injury." Artie explained. The two detectives, Kurt and Artie were all in the forensics lab, discussing the body and the case.</p><p>"Fingerprints?" Kurt asked.</p><p>"Yup. Found a bunch of prints at the scene. All match Chad Jackson." Artie said.</p><p>"Ok, thank you Artie. I think I've heard everything I need to…" Kurt started but was cut off by Finn.</p><p>"Anyone else having a hard time buying that a sniper shot him at close range?" Finn remarked. "And in the back of the head?"</p><p>Nobody spoke. Finn looked up at them.</p><p>"Come on. Jackson would've looked him in the eye and shot him in the face like a gentleman." Finn remarked.</p><p>"And how do you know that?" Quinn asked. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Because that's how I would've done it." He replied, gravely. Everyone looked at each other worriedly.</p><p>"Do we need Artie to repeat the evidence?" Kurt asked. "His prints were found at the scene. Jackson is still out there. He's unhinged and dangerous. We need to go public on this NOW."</p><p>"I wouldn't do that!" Finn called.</p><p>"I know YOU wouldn't do that. You wouldn't also bother to change your shirt every, I don't know, week but neither of these things are decisions you're making."</p><p>"Most of the vets in Jackson's therapy group are dead. All right? Now, that's either a big coincidence, or this thing's bigger than it seems." Finn growled. Kurt shook his head.</p><p>"I'm sorry. We need more to go on than that, Finn. I didn't want this to escalate to murder but it has and it's our responsibility to ensure the safety of the public, so this doesn't get worse."</p><p>"And you think smoking him out with a press release is gonna do that?" Finn snapped. Kurt sighed and turned to Quinn.</p><p>"Silent partner. What do you think?" Kurt asked her. Quinn thought for a while before coming to a decision.</p><p>"I think, Finn, you're too close to this. We need to find Jackson. If he's innocent, then he can prove that when he's in custody."</p><p>"No, no, no. Guys like Jackson, they don't go into custody. I don't think you guys really understand who you're dealing with. You come at him with your guns blazing and I GUARANTEE you that your men aren't getting out of this alive." Finn explained.</p><p>"Finn, I say again, you're too close to this." Quinn said. Kurt nodded.</p><p>"Thank you, Quinn." Kurt replied. Finn shot Quinn a death glare.</p><p>"Wow, thanks a lot, Quinn." He snapped. He then turned back to Kurt. "You know what? I'm 'too close' to this. I'm recusing myself from the case."</p><p>Kurt glared at him.</p><p>"You're just going to go after him yourself, aren't you?" Kurt remarked. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm going back to my trailer and I'm gonna drink. Excuse me." Finn spat and he stormed out the room. Quinn and Kurt looked at each other, extremely worried. They now had not one but two unhinged SEALs out on the street…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Good morning. Last night, Logan Cox was murdered, leaving work at the Veteran's Hospital. And although this is an ongoing investigation, the suspect in this case, Chad Jackson, remains at large. The Los Angeles Police Department would like to ask the community for any information that might be helpful in Mr. Jackson's apprehension."</p><p>As soon as Kurt finished his press conference, the phone lines started ringing like crazy. Of course most of them were crap but there was always a chance a couple were legit. Tina answered the phone.</p><p>"Yes, ma'am. Every detail helps." She said. She then sighed. "I agree, he is attractive."</p><p>Meanwhile, on the other side of the room, Puck was having just as little luck.</p><p>"So, you saw the suspect on the sidelines of the Rams game, huh?"</p><p>Quinn walked through the precinct, listening to the various useless tips that the citizens were giving. She listened as one of the officers spoke to one of the callers.</p><p>"Littering milk cartons in the park. Yes, sir, I'll be sure to add that to the…"</p><p>Quinn ran over to him and snatched the phone from him.</p><p>"Hey, hey, hey. Give me that." She snapped. She then put her phone to her ear. "Where exactly did you find this man littering milk cartons?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn parked at the entrance of the park. When she stepped out of the car, she took two steps and she sighed.</p><p>"Seriously, Finn? I've been a cop for 15 years. You think I don't know when I'm being followed?"</p><p>Finn sighed and walked out from behind a car. Contrasting Quinn's attire of a vest and her gun, Finn didn't have either of those things. He had no protection against a very lethal SEAL. He scowled at her. Quinn looked down in shame. She had gone on and on about him having her back and the second he needed her support, she threw him under the bus.</p><p>"Look, Finn, I'm really sorry. I know you're pissed, you have the right to be, but I made the right call. People deserve to be on alert to him."</p><p>Finn glared at him.</p><p>"You know, you're probably more of a threat than he is." Finn remarked. "You're so obsessed with doing everything by the book you can't see what's right in front of you."</p><p>Quinn scowled at him.</p><p>"Look, forgive me for doing my job. Why don't you try doing yours? You're not a SEAL anymore, Finn. You're a cop, so why don't you act like one?"</p><p>Finn bit back several insults and he sighed.</p><p>"I'm assuming Jackson's here." Finn snapped. Quinn nodded. The two of them silently trudged up the path of the park, past the border and into the unclaimed territory behind it. Finn didn't say a word to Quinn for a whole half an hour.</p><p>"Look, maybe you're being one with nature, or being your usual broody self, but you haven't said a word to me for half an hour."</p><p>"I'm being stealthy, Quinn. Why don't you give it a shot?"</p><p>Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Hey, look, I'm sorry I took Kurt's side back there but it doesn't change the fact that I'm out here sweating bullets with you."</p><p>"You are sweating a lot. Why don't you hang back?" Finn muttered. "Take a break."</p><p>Quinn shook her head.</p><p>"Nah, nah, nah. I'm fine. Just tell me if you see a water fountain, or a misting tent or something."</p><p>Soon, they reached a forest area that was completely covered by foliage. Finn didn't hesitate though.</p><p>"This way." He pointed. Quinn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Navy SEAL's instinct kicking in?" Quinn asked. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"No, my grandaddy taught me how to hunt. When I was a kid, I'd track deer, elk, possum."</p><p>"Possum?"</p><p>"Marinate it in some teriyaki, get some rice and beans on the side."</p><p>Quinn laughed.</p><p>"That's so country. Teriyaki possum with coon pie."</p><p>Finn suddenly stopped abruptly.</p><p>"Uh-oh." He murmured.</p><p>"Hunter instinct?" Quinn asked. Finn shook his head and slowly raised his hands in the air.</p><p>"I think we just walked into Jackson's kill zone."</p><p>"His kill zone?!" Quinn muttered quietly.</p><p>"Shhhh." Finn whispered. "We're probably in his crosshairs right now."</p><p>Quinn took out her gun.</p><p>"Okay, I know you're Mr. Crazy Under Fire, but I need a little heads up on kill zones. Is there a DMZ around here somewhere?"</p><p>"Hey, hey, hey. Stand down." Finn demanded. "I'm serious. If Jackson thinks we're here to arrest him, he will kill you."</p><p>"Me? What about you?" Quinn snapped. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"I'm a SEAL. I'm his brother. I'm safe."</p><p>Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"But Finn, we are here to arrest him." She whispered. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"Speak for yourself. Go that way." He said, pointing up a trail. "Trust me."</p><p>Quinn nodded and went up the random, useless trail Finn asked her to. To be honest, he just wanted her out of the picture so he could talk, SEAL to SEAL.</p><p>"Hey Jackson!" Finn shouted once Quinn was out of earshot. "Sorry to barge in unannounced. Look, I'm not here to arrest you. I just want to talk."</p><p>No answer. Finn nodded.</p><p>"Man, I used to hate sniper overwatch. I mean, at first, it's all right. You know, you're out in the woods. It's quiet. Just you and your spotter. Then you realise you can't move, can't take a leak, can't talk. Just sitting there, waiting. Staring through the optics. Then the silence becomes deafening. Nothing to say, no one to say it to. Here I am, just listening to the trees again."</p><p>Finally, Jackson's distant voice spoke.</p><p>"I didn't kill Dr. Cox." He shouted. Finn smiled.</p><p>"A lot of people think you did."</p><p>"You having trouble making up your own mind?" Jackson asked. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Yeah, well, you had your motivation. Dr. Cox poisoned you, trying to feed you those pills every day. And your fingerprints were at the scene, so…"</p><p>"Yeah, I was there." Jackson admitted. "I tried to get him to admit what he'd done. But he was alive when I left. Somebody else silenced him before the truth could come out. Now it's up to me to find out who was behind it all and stop them."</p><p>"Stop who?"</p><p>"You know, I can tell you, you look pretty damn calm for a man with a rifle pointed at him."</p><p>Finn shrugged.</p><p>"It's not my first time. Hey Jackson, why don't you let me take you in?"</p><p>"Nah." Jackson replied. "I told you, not till I finish my mission."</p><p>"Right, right, your mission. You did mention that. How about we finish the mission together?"</p><p>"Sorry, I don't need a spotter on this one. Oh, your partner on the other hand… you got her six?"</p><p>Finn realised just as it was too late. Quinn walked a few steps and suddenly heard a faint click. She looked down and saw a tripwire, presumably connected to an explosive. Quinn's heart dropped.</p><p>"FINN! FINN!" She screamed. Hearing her voice, Finn sprinted towards her and found her two minutes later.</p><p>"Quinn!" He shouted. She saw him and relief briefly flitted in her face.</p><p>"Look. What is that?!" She shouted, pointing to the contraption before her. Finn slowly nodded and examined it.</p><p>"Okay, don't move. You stepped into a tripwire connected to an IED."</p><p>"Call bomb squad." Quinn demanded.</p><p>"No, there's no time for that." Finn murmured. Quinn started hyperventilating.</p><p>"No ti… No… no, I-I can't die like this."</p><p>"Okay, there might be another way out." Finn murmured.</p><p>"Might be?!" Quinn screamed. "Look, tell my family I love them. Tell them…"</p><p>Finn started running away from her at this point. Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Where are you going?!" She shouted. "What are you doing?!"</p><p>When he was around 100 meters from her, Finn turned and barrelled towards her at top seed. He tackled her just as the explosive went off, causing them to land roughly on the dirt but unharmed by the fireball next to them. They groaned and coughed at the debris. Finn turned to Quinn.</p><p>"Tell them yourself."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next morning, when Santana woke up and came downstairs, she didn't see Quinn in the kitchen as usual. She heard noises coming from the basement so she went down there and saw Quinn on the treadmill they had set up.</p><p>"I didn't hear you come in last night. Is everything okay?" She asked. Quinn slowly hopped off the treadmill.</p><p>"I almost died last night." She murmured. Santana's heart dropped.</p><p>"Die… what?"</p><p>"I mean, I'm fine. I didn't, but… it was just… I made a mistake. I wasn't as focused as I usually am out there. San?"</p><p>"Hmm?"</p><p>"Have I lost a step?"</p><p>"What are you talking about, Quinn?"</p><p>"You know, a couple of years ago, I was a completely different person. I'm old now."</p><p>"Come on, Quinn. Experience trumps youth every day of the week."</p><p>Quinn laughed.</p><p>"Tell that to my knees." She remarked. Although she was in excellent physical shape, she was almost 40 so she was starting to feel old. "Oh, San. Ever since the heart attack, I just haven't felt like I can bounce back. The other day, chasing after a guy, he jumps off a building. How am I supposed to keep up with guys that jump off buildings?"</p><p>"Listen to me." Santana said. "Wise women don't jump off buildings. And Quinn, you're a very wise woman."</p>
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<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Chapter 17</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next morning, Finn was sitting in Kurt's office, listening to Kurt yell at him.</p><p>"The entire bomb squad is searching Griffith Park for more booby traps. They had to close the park! The last time that happened was 50 years ago, when the animals escaped the L.A Zoo."</p><p>"Well, I hope they found them all." Finn replied. "The bombs, not the koalas and orangutans."</p><p>"This is not funny, Finn." Kurt snapped. "You should have called for backup the second you knew Jackson was there."</p><p>"And how do you think he'd respond with an Army of police coming at him?"</p><p>"And how's your one-on-one approach working? Because he's gotten away twice! This last time, you almost got Quinn killed in the process."</p><p>Finn stood up and towered over Kurt.</p><p>"You don't think branding him a murderer had anything to do with that? On TV? All right, he is scared because everyone believes he's guilty."</p><p>'Yes, EVERYONE but you! You're too close to this, Finn. Quinn was right. And this devil-may-care attitude is going to get her killed. You're off the case, officially."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Meanwhile, Puck and Quinn walked towards interrogation room A, where they had a prisoner waiting.</p><p>"So, who are we talking to?" Tina asked.</p><p>"Rodrigo Salazar. He's an explosive expert. I think he could help us." Puck replied.</p><p>"How do you know him?" She asked. Puck looked at her with an unreadable expression on his face.</p><p>"Don't worry about it. Just follow me.' He said, walking into the room. Rodrigo chuckled when he saw them.</p><p>"I like the change of scenery." He said. "But there's no chance I'm gonna help the cops."</p><p>"You don't think helping us out will help you out?" Puck commented. "Maybe knock a few years off? I think this might interest you."</p><p>Puck opened a file in front of Rodrigo.</p><p>"Bomb went off in Griffith Park. Almost killed two cops."</p><p>"Your partner figure out what happens when you get too close to the flames?" Rodrigo asked Puck in spanish so Tina wouldn't understand.</p><p>"Hey, focus!" Puck snapped and he pointed to the photos of the bomb. After studying them, Rodrigo looked up.</p><p>"M18. Claymore mine. Rigged to C-4."</p><p>"That's the stuff." Puck replied. "Any idea where he'd get something like that from?"</p><p>"Not easy. But that's the least of your problems right now. Your bomber is making something other than booby traps. This right there…" He said, pointing to one of the pictures. "These are pieces of electrical wires. The kind you use to daisy-chain C-4 together."</p><p>"Why would you do that?" Puck asked.</p><p>"Listen, a block of C-4 has enough boom. Wire a whole bunch together, rigged to blow up in all directions… that's enough to level a building, homie."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn sat on the roof of the LAPD building, sipping from his pocket flask. He felt so helpless. All he wanted to do was help Jackson but the LAPD idiots were so stubborn! Suddenly, footsteps approached him and Finn saw Puck walking over to him.</p><p>"Yo, Finn!" He said. "Got something for you."</p><p>"I'm good, Puck. Got all I need right here, buddy." He said, holding up his flask.</p><p>"It's about the explosives Jackson used."</p><p>"Didn't you hear? I'm off the case."</p><p>"I just figured you'd want to know. He managed to get enough C-4 to level a building."</p><p>Finn's head shot up and he snatched the file from Puck. He read through it briefly before putting it down.</p><p>"Anybody else know about this?" He asked.</p><p>"I came to you first. Any idea what he's gonna do with it?"</p><p>Finn stood up.</p><p>"I sure hope not…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn sped towards Gaius Pharma as fast as they possibly could. They knew that if Jackson were to blow up a building, that would definitely be the building he'd take down. Finn ran out of the car and into the building.</p><p>"Why do you think Jackson's coming after Gaius?" Quinn asked him as they stood in the lift.</p><p>"He holds 'em all responsible for poisoning the vets. When we were in the park, he said he had to finish his mission. I think this is it."</p><p>"Mission? What mission?"</p><p>Suddenly, the power in the lift died down and they screeched to a halt. Finn immediately tensed up.</p><p>"We're too late." He muttered.</p><p>"Too late for what? For what, Finn?"</p><p>"Jackson's gonna blow up the whole building." Finn announced. Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"This building? The building we are currently in? And you're just getting around to telling me this."</p><p>Finn shrugged. The two of them worked on prying the elevator doors open. They finally managed to do it in a few minutes.</p><p>"Look, on the bright side, we're still alive so Jackson's not completely crazy." Finn remarked. Quinn scowled at him.</p><p>"Trying to blow up a building, that's normal to you? By any chance, did you two exchange numbers?"</p><p>"We're taking it slow, Q. You know, one step at a time. Okay, help me up. We're gonna have to climb up." Finn said as they revealed a small crack in the ceiling of the elevator. Quinn strained as she gave him a leg up and boosted himself through the crack. Once he was up, he looked down at her.</p><p>"Okay, okay… we have to call for backup." Finn remarked.</p><p>Meanwhile, downstairs, Jackson strolled into the building, clad in his suicide vest. Immediately, he caused a colossal panic as all of the frantic civilians sprinted for the exit.</p><p>"Take it easy! Take it easy! You're gonna be fine!" Jackson exclaimed. "There's plenty of time. You don't have to run!"</p><p>Back in the LAPD, Tina sprinted into Kurt's office.</p><p>"I'm back, sir." She said. "Look, I just got a call from Finn, and I don't know if he's kidding, but…"</p><p>"What is it?"</p><p>Tina took a deep breath.</p><p>"He's asking for backup…"</p><p>Kurt's eyes widened.</p><p>"SEND EVERYONE! SWAT! HOSTAGE NEGOTIATORS! ESU! EVERYONE!"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn sprinted onto the executive floor where Patricia was cowering behind an armed guard.</p><p>"Put the gun away." Finn snapped. "PUT IT AWAY!" He screamed at the bodyguard. The man shakily nodded.</p><p>"What's going on?" Patricia asked.</p><p>"We've gotta get you guys out of the building. Let's go!" Quinn snapped.</p><p>"Sorry, I can't let that happen." A voice said from behind them. Finn and Quinn turned around to see Jackson in his vest.</p><p>"Look, Jackson, this is not the way." Finn murmured.</p><p>"Oh, it's the only way." He replied. "THEY POISONED MY BROTHERS! They poisoned my brothers. I gotta make sure it never happens again."</p><p>"Detectives, please do something." Patricia begged. "He's gonna kill…"</p><p>"Stop talking." Finn snapped. He then turned to Jackson and put his gun away. "I'm not leaving, so, you wanna take them out, you're gonna have my blood on your hands, too."</p><p>"Mine too." Quinn added, putting her gun away. "You tried to kill me twice so I'm sure it doesn't have the same impact, but we're in this together."</p><p>Finn walked over to Jackson.</p><p>"You won. All right? You proved your point. And you promised me I could take you in after your mission was done. Let me do my part. Let me prove what they did. Come on, man. Too many good men have already died."</p><p>With tears in his eyes, Jackson shakily turned off the bomb countdown. As soon as he did, the bodyguard whipped out his gun and fired a shot at Jackson. It hit him in the shoulder and sent him flying backwards. Reacting like lightning, Finn whipped out his gun and fired a shot into the temple of the bodyguard. He then ran over to Jackson who was lying on the ground.</p><p>"You all right?" Finn asked.</p><p>"Yeah, I'll live." Jackson replied. Suddenly, Finn watched as the countdown of the bomb restarted at 30 seconds. His eyes widened.</p><p>"We got a little problem." Finn called to Quinn. "A round hit the detonator."</p><p>"That's a large problem!" Quinn shouted, running over.</p><p>"We gotta get rid of this thing." Finn remarked</p><p>"How?" Quinn yelled.</p><p>"I don't know. Throw it outside?"</p><p>They looked out the window and they saw tons of civilians and cops outside. Finn and Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Damn it! Too many civilians!"</p><p>They watched as the countdown went from 30 to 20 to 10. Suddenly, Jackson limped over to them and whispered something in Finn's ear. Finn smiled and nodded. He grabbed the vest from the ground and he passed Jackson his gun.</p><p>"Um… guys, what are you doing?" Quinn asked. Finn didn't answer. Instead, he turned to Jackson.</p><p>"Don't miss." He murmured. Jackson nodded. Finn then grabbed the vest and started sprinting towards the open window, Jackson following close behind.</p><p>"GUYS! GUYS! WHAT ARE YOU…" Quinn screamed. Finn finally made it to the window and he jumped out, throwing the vest in the air in the process…</p><p>As Finn free fell out of the 70 story building, Jackson stood by the window ledge and aimed. He was a SEAL sniper so he was extremely competent at long-range shooting, even if it was with a pistol. As the vest reached its apex, Jackson squinted one eye and fired a bullet at the bomb. He hit it square in the center and the bomb exploded in mid-air. Finn fell for a good 5 seconds before he finally hit the ground. But it wasn't a hard surface that Finn landed on. It was water. He had landed right where he aimed - in the company pool!</p><p>Finn climbed out of the pool and looked up at Jackson. The two SEALs winked at each other, grinning and smirking wildly.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>An hour later, Finn walked into a hospital room where Jackson was lying down.</p><p>"Why don't you get off your ass and quit sandbaggin', bud?" Finn remarked. "Good news. They're dropping the murder charges. They tied the gun to Swinton's bodyguard."</p><p>"Still got some other charges I'm looking at to deal with." Jackson replied. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"You've done worse."</p><p>"Hey man, I just want to say that, um…"</p><p>"No, don't." Finn cut him off. "All right? You ain't got to, man."</p><p>Suddenly, the two men saw Dr. Pillsbury watching them from the window. Finn smiled.</p><p>"Do me a favor, though. Trust her like you trusted me, yeah?"</p><p>"Oh, she helped you out too?" Jackson asked. Finn chuckled.</p><p>"Well, let's just say she understands complicated." Finn responded.</p><p>"Hooyah." Jackson said.</p><p>"Hooyah."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Chapter 18</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A girl sprinted down the deserted street at the dead of night, her bare feet slapping against the pavement. She heard a sports car revving behind her and she screamed. The car was gaining on her with every step. She had nowhere to go. Eventually, she turned and ran off the road but the car didn't stop. As the girl leaned on a tree, gasping for breath, the car hopped off the road and drove straight into her.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn's eyes snapped open. He was extremely hung over and he groaned as he sat up from his sofa-bed in his trailer. He immediately heard a deafening ringing noise in his ears, and he could faintly hear the sound of a terrible cover of Hungry Like the Wolf coming from outside. Finn scowled and stormed out of his trailer. Parked opposite his normally isolated trailer was another trailer and outside, sat 3 dutch guys and their electric guitar.</p><p>"Guys! Guys! Guys, guys, guys!" Finn shouted. They stopped playing and looked at him.</p><p>"Hey neighbor!" One of the men exclaimed. Finn glared at him.</p><p>"Hello. Look… I'm not the one to, you know, put the brakes on a party, but… well… it's early and, uh, you guys can't play or sing, so…"</p><p>"Too early? No way, man. It is never too early to rock! Super fun! We're the wolves!"</p><p>"Um… amazing but as you can see, this part of the beach is taken." Finn said, pointing to his trailer. "So maybe you could… rock up the coast."</p><p>"This is a public beach lot, no?" The man asked. Finn swore under his breath.</p><p>"All right." He muttered. "So, where are you guys from?"</p><p>"We are from Amsterdam, here to R-O-C-K in the U.S.A." They exclaimed. They then started playing and singing again. After a couple of seconds, Finn grabbed their amp and yanked out all the wires. Their eyes widened in shock and Finn smirked at them.</p><p>"Welcome to Los Angeles, boys."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Prepare to be amazed." Quinn announced to her family as a man carefully placed a new TV on the wall.</p><p>"Oh, what? Do we not look prepared?" Luke remarked.</p><p>"Why did we need a new TV anyways?" Haley commented.</p><p>"TV? No, TV is what we used to have. This is a state-of-the-art, fully integrated entertainment network."</p><p>Santana laughed.</p><p>"It's adorable how you think how you're gonna remember how all this works tomorrow."</p><p>"Ok, Ms. Fabray." The technician said, handing her a tablet remote. "From this, you can control the entire system. And while I had access, I updated the OS on your wireless devices and networked your photo libraries."</p><p>"Awesome. So I just press a button and my photos come on screen?"</p><p>The man nodded.</p><p>"Yeah, look." He said, pressing the button. The pictures from Quinn's family's vacation popped on screen and Quinn's face lit up.</p><p>"Hey! Look, San, it's us!"</p><p>Santana chuckled. As they watched the pictures, Quinn smiled.</p><p>"We look like we should have our own reality show. Look how photogenic this family is!"</p><p>"Very photogenic." The man replied, gazing at the screen. Quinn looked up to see a provocative picture of Haley in just a bra.</p><p>"Mom!" Haley shouted.</p><p>"Quinn!" Santana shouted. Quinn's eyes widened. She dived to cover the screen with her body.</p><p>"Hey, hey, hey, what did you do? Fix that!"</p><p>The man typed a couple of keys on the tablet and suddenly, the picture didn't disappear but instead it zoomed in on her chest.</p><p>"Close your eyes! What'd you do?!" Quinn shouted at the man. "You know what? Get out of my house! Stumble your ass out!"</p><p>Once he was gone, Quinn turned to her daughter, fuming.</p><p>"What are you…"</p><p>"It's… it's a picture." Haley stammered.</p><p>"A picture?!"</p><p>"I just wanted to, you know, see how I looked." Haley replied. Quinn relaxed a little, at least until Luke spoke.</p><p>"Then why'd you text it?" He asked, holding up her phone. Haley immediately blushed and snatched the phone from her brother.</p><p>"Give me that!"</p><p>"You texted it?!" Santana sighed.</p><p>"YOU TEXTED THAT TO SOMEONE?!" Quinn screamed. "I want his name and number. Now!"</p><p>"What? No way!" Haley exclaimed, walking away. Quinn started to storm after her daughter but Santana stopped her.</p><p>"Woah, woah, woah, Q, calm down." She said.</p><p>"Are you… okay with this?!" Quinn spat.</p><p>"No, but I don't want her to be ashamed of her body either."</p><p>"Why not? I'm comfortable with that."</p><p>Santana rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Which is why <em>I </em>will be the one to talk to her… after she calms down."</p><p>After Santana walked away, Quinn turned to Luke who was laughing.</p><p>"You think this is funny?" She snapped.</p><p>"No, I don't. Which is why I memorized the number where she sent that photo to." He replied. Quinn smirked and nodded.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That afternoon, Finn, Tina and Quinn walked down to the forensics lab. They were about to get the forensic report on the body. Unfortunately, Artie had transferred permanently to Detroit for family reasons so they were about to meet the replacement. She walked into the room shortly after them.</p><p>"Hey guys!" She exclaimed cheerfully. Quinn raised an eyebrow and Finn lowered his shades in shock. The new forensics expert did not look like a professional. She was wearing a goofy t-shirt and sweatpants.</p><p>"Um… hi. You must be the new forensics expert." Quinn said. The woman nodded. She was extremely short - no taller than 5 feet - and she had long brown hair.</p><p>"Yup. I'm Marley. Marley Rose. It's really great to meet you!" She exclaimed before grabbing Finn and Quinn into a fierce hug. She was EXTREMELY friendly and it was slightly off-putting compared to Artie.</p><p>"Nice to meet you, Marley. So what have we got?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Well, she's 19. Nina Clausen. Found half-naked and dead on a hood of a Ferrari wrecked on a residential street in Beverly Hills. Driver was MIA." Tina said. Marley nodded.</p><p>"Yup, and from the cuts on her feet, I'd say she covered a fair distance." She added.</p><p>"She was running from someone, wasn't she?" Finn commented as he looked at her feet. "What is that on her feet?"</p><p>"Don't know yet. I sent it to the lab." Marley replied.</p><p>"Where's she from?" Quinn asked. "Does she go to school?"</p><p>"As far as I can tell, she moved from North Carolina to L.A about six months ago. Has some modeling and acting credits."</p><p>"Who's the vehicle registered to?" Finn asked.</p><p>"No registered owner or plate. Just a license frame from a place called Prime Exotics."</p><p>Finn nodded and walked out the room. Once he was gone, Quinn pulled Tina to the corner of the room.</p><p>"Hey, Tina. I'm gonna send you a phone number. I need you to get me whatever you can on whoever it is." Quinn whispered. "It's not about the case; it's personal."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn walked into the car dealership moments later and they stared at all of the flamboyant sports cars around them.</p><p>"Man, how small does your penis need to be to buy one of these cars?" Quinn remarked. Finn snorted. Suddenly, a skinny, slicked back man in a maroon suit walked over to them.</p><p>"Good morning. Welcome to Prime Exotics, where car dreams become a reality. I own one of these bad boys myself."</p><p>Finn and Quinn looked at each other and laughed.</p><p>"Wonderful." Finn replied. "My partner has a question for you." He said, walking away. The man then turned to Quinn.</p><p>"Sure, ask me anything. Joseph O'Brien, head of sales. Are these cars absolutely perfect for Los Angeles or what?"</p><p>"Yeah… listen I'm LAPD. I need some information on one of your customers. Someone who bought a red F355."</p><p>Before the man could answer, Finn called out from behind the man.</p><p>"Uh… a little help here?" He said. The man turned to see Finn struggling with opening the door to one of the sports cars. The man rolled his eyes and unlocked the car. Finn opened it and the doors opened upwards. "Ooh! Fancy! How much for this one right here?"</p><p>The dealer sighed. He knew by the way Finn was dressed that there was no way he could afford the car but he answered anyway.</p><p>"That would be 210 thousand."</p><p>"Make it 205 and I'll take it off your hands today." Finn smirked as he sat in the car. "Oh, wait! No cup holder!"</p><p>Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Red F355. Who bought it?" She asked. The man sighed.</p><p>"Look, I'd love to help you guys out here, but our customers… they value discretion."</p><p>"This is a murder investigation." Quinn snapped. "So I suggest you tell me what I need to know so you can get back to your little tanning bed."</p><p>"Uh, Joseph, do not listen to her. You are bronzed, beautiful and powerful." Finn exclaimed from inside his car. "Hey, Joey. Let's go for a test ride."</p><p>Quinn laughed quietly.</p><p>"I wouldn't do that if I were you." She warned him.</p><p>"Ah, come on Joey!" Finn remarked. "Be somebody. Sell a car today, my man!"</p><p>Joseph got it in the car and Finn winked at Quinn before roaring out of the lot. He got onto the street and took off like a maniac.</p><p>"What-what-what are you doing?! Slow down!"</p><p>Finn sighed.</p><p>"Ah, I'm sorry. I am in a mood. Had a rough morning. I got new neighbors who are a pain in my ass. But then there's you, Joe. You know? And I just don't feel like you're meeting me halfway on things. I mean, look, sales is a two-way street. Am I right?"</p><p>"J-j-j-jjust let me out! Please!"</p><p>"Oh, hop out any time." Finn smirked. "Or… you could tell me who purchased that F355…"</p><p>Five minutes later, Finn pulled back into the lot and Joseph dived out of the car and stormed over to Quinn.</p><p>"He's insane!" He shouted. Quinn shrugged. Finn then walked over to her.</p><p>"So, I got the name. Dylan Ashworth."</p><p>"So did I from Rick here." She replied, pointing to the man next to her. "And all I had to do was ask."</p><p>Finn glared at Rick.</p><p>"Well, thank you, Rick… for everything."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Are you two aware that Dylan Ashworth is Henry Ashworth's son?" Kurt asked them.</p><p>"And Sheldon and Dorothy Ashworth's grandson. Yeah, we get it." Quinn replied. Finn raised a hand.</p><p>"Uh… I have no idea who these people are." He said.</p><p>"Have you ever driven on Ashworth Boulevard or veen to Ashworth Pavilion?" Kurt asked.</p><p>"You know, I don't frequent pavilions, not as much as I should, and I know that I'm missing out, but I…"</p><p>"You ever heard of Ashworth, California?" Quinn asked. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"What, do they got their own city?"</p><p>"It's where the family struck gold. Literally, back in 1849. They've been California royalty ever since." Kurt explained.</p><p>"That doesn't make them above the law." Quinn argued.</p><p>"No, but they do keep an entire law firm on retainer." He replied.</p><p>"Well, good. If this Dylan kid murdered our girl then he's gonna need it. Let's go have a chat with him." Finn replied, standing up.</p><p>"Agreed, but JUST TALK to him." Kurt snapped at Finn. "The Ashworths are formidable. Keep it completely professional, respectful even."</p><p>"Why are you just looking at me?" Finn asked.</p><p>"Because you are the only one I'm talking to." Kurt responded. Finn rolled his eyes and the two detectives walked out to question their suspect.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Chapter 19</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The mansion they walked into was buzzing when they walked in. There was a full-blown party going on in the pool of the mansion with probably around 100 people there. Finn and Quinn split up to find Dylan. As Finn strutted into the poolside area, a blonde girl dressed in a very skimpy bikini walked up to him.</p><p>"Hey there, cutie. I love your mustache." She remarked. Finn smirked.</p><p>"Oh. Thank you very much. Be careful though - a couple of drinks and it gets kind of crazy."</p><p>"That's my kind of mustache." She giggled. "Can I get it, or you, a drink? Or anything else?"</p><p>"Anything? That doesn't really narrow it down, now does it?" He asked. She shrugged.</p><p>"That's the idea at these parties."</p><p>"Ah, and who's idea was it? Dylan?"</p><p>"Well, it's Dylan's place but it's Julian's party." She replied, pointing at a guy across the pool from them. Finn's eyes widened, not at the scrawny greaseball named Julian, but at the girl standing next to him. With her dark skin, long black hair and her intoxicating smile, Finn would recognise her in a heartbeat.</p><p>"Mercedes?" He murmured. For a brief moment, Mercedes locked eyes with him and when she saw him, her mom dropped and she started to jog towards the exit of the house. Finn followed her.</p><p>"Mercedes? MERCEDES!" He called but she didn't answer. She made it to her jeep and drove away before Finn could catch up to her. He was shell shocked. He never thought he would ever see that girl again.</p><p>Meanwhile, Quinn walked towards the hot tub at the back of the mansion, where Dylan Ashworth was sitting with three girls.</p><p>"Dylan Ashworth?" She called. He looked at her.</p><p>"Yeah? Who are you?"</p><p>"Detective Quinn Fabray, LAPD."</p><p>"What, are you part of the security detail for the party? Talk to Julian. He handles all that."</p><p>"No, I'm here investigating a homicide. Young lady named Ms. Nina Clausen. Does that name ring a bell?"</p><p>"Nope." Dylan shook his head. "Was she hot?"</p><p>Quinn scowled at him.</p><p>"She was found dead on the hood of a wrecked Ferrari that YOU bought about 6 weeks ago."</p><p>"Is the car okay?" Dylan remarked. Quinn bit her lip to prevent a string of insults from coming out and she forced herself to stay calm. Dylan hopped out of the jacuzzi and faced her.</p><p>"I think it would be in your interest if we went somewhere where we could talk about this very sensitive matter in private."</p><p>Suddenly, Dylan ducked his head down and leaned forward to sniff a bunch of cocaine that was lying on the side. That's when Quinn snapped.</p><p>"THAT'S IT! You're under arrest for possession of narcotics."</p><p>Quinn dragged Dylan over to the front of the house where Finn was standing, still reeling from the sight of seeing Mercedes.</p><p>"Do you have any idea who you're messing with?" Dylan growled.</p><p>"I do. Detective Hudson. Meet Dylan Ashworth." Quinn said. "Now, he does, too."</p><p>Finn didn't respond. His face was still extremely pale and he looked like he had just seen a ghost. Quinn noticed.</p><p>"Hey, you okay?" She asked.</p><p>"I just saw somebody I knew." Finn mumbled. Quinn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Doesn't seem like this is your kind of scene."</p><p>"No, it was a friend of Rachel's. Her old roommate. The maid of honor at our wedding."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next morning, Finn was sitting in his trailer, watching the tape of his wedding on the TV. He watched as Mercedes stood up to give her speech as maid of honor.</p><p>"Hi, everyone. I'm Mercedes." She said. "Uh… I hate giving speeches, but there is one story I'd like to tell. So, Rachel and I were living together in L.A when she booked a job in Texas. And I get a phone call from her, and she says that she's gonna be staying a little longer because she met a guy and she was wondering if I could send her some clothes. I said, 'sure, what do you need?' And she said 'Cowboy boots'."</p><p>Everyone laughed and Rachel blushed.</p><p>"I knew in that moment that I had lost her forever." Mercedes continued. "Um… Finn, I don't know what you did or how you did it… but Rachel is happier than I have ever seen her."</p><p>Finn couldn't watch anymore. It was just too painful. As he willowed in the silence and sadness, suddenly, the horrific rendition of Hungry Like the Wolf from his new neighbors cut through the air once again. Finn growled and stormed out of his trailer. Because Finn had destroyed their amp, they were now playing on an acoustic guitar.</p><p>"Hey, <em>lamzak.</em>" One of the guys said as Finn walked over. "Check it out. No power, no problem."</p><p>"Do you guys know any, um… Bluto Blutarsky?" Finn asked, randomly. They looked at each other and shook their heads.</p><p>"Who?"</p><p>"Are you serious? You guys don't know… Oh he's amazing. Really amazing, yeah. May I?" Finn asked, pointing to the acoustic guitar in one of the guys's hands.</p><p>"Yeah, okay. Rock on!" The man exclaimed, handing Finn the guitar. As soon as the guitar left the man's hands and entered Finn's outstretched ones, he turned and smashed the guitar repeatedly at the ground until it was nothing but smithereens. After he was done, he handed the destroyed guitar back to one of the absolutely petrified men.</p><p>"Dutch, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, boys." He said, and he started to walk back to his own trailer. "Enjoy the rest of your day!"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Haley was taking out an apple from the fridge when she heard Santana walk into the kitchen.</p><p>"You know, you nearly gave your mom another heart attack yesterday." Santana remarked. Haley sighed.</p><p>"Come on, Santana, it's no big deal."</p><p>"Haley, you don't want pictures like that floating around the Internet."</p><p>"It's not like I was naked."</p><p>"It's not like you were shouting 'respect me' either. Sharing your body, Haley, even in a picture is a big deal. Trust me, I know. Back in high school, I took the exact same photo, except I wouldn't be wearing underwear at all."</p><p>"So what, I should just wear a turtleneck every day?"</p><p>"I'm not talking about your clothes, honey. I'm talking about your choices. If you don't respect your body, boys won't either. I'm just asking you to be smart and think beyond this moment."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"You're telling me you never met Nina Clausen before?" Quinn snapped. She was sitting in the interrogation room with Dylan Ashworth and was getting absolutely nowhere. "That she'd never attended one of your house parties?"</p><p>"No clue." Dylan replied calmly. "I meet a lot of people and have a lot of parties."</p><p>Quinn slammed her hand on the table.</p><p>"She was found dead on the hood of your car, Dylan!"</p><p>"And like I told you, it was stolen." He responded.</p><p>"When?"</p><p>"Not sure. I was busy."</p><p>"Doing what and with who?"</p><p>"Whom. And I don't remember their names. I'd need to see pictures of them. Naked would make it easier."</p><p>Before Quinn could react, the door swung open and Dylan Ashworth's father, his family attorney and Captain Kurt walked in.</p><p>"Don't say anything else, Dylan." The attorney snapped. "Detective Fabray, I'm the Ashworth family's attorney. This is over right now. As I understand it, Detective, you entered Dylan's house without a warrant."</p><p>Quinn shook her head.</p><p>"I heard a disturbance…"</p><p>"Please, Detective." Dylan Ashworth's father, Henry Ashworth, said. "Excuse my attorney's tone. From what I understand, there's enough blame to go around in this matter, the lion's share of it falling squarely on my son. But in light of the circumstances, at this point we view this as a family matter."</p><p>Quinn turned to Kurt.</p><p>"Captain…"</p><p>"You have my full apologies for the confusion." Kurt said to Henry Ashworth.</p><p>"Is someone confused about something here?" Quinn shouted.</p><p>"That's enough, Detective." Kurt ordered. The Ashworths and their attorney walked out of the room moments later and Quinn turned to Kurt. "What the hell were you thinking, Quinn? You may have just jeopardized any case we try to make against the kid on this."</p><p>"That punk pulled out a vial of coke AFTER I told him I was a cop." Quinn spat. Kurt's jaw dropped.</p><p>"That's why you brought him in? For POSSESSION?!"</p><p>"You see that girl in the morgue? That's why I brought him in! Dylan and all his friends at the party, they all think that they're untouchable."</p><p>"And he'll remain that way unless you and Finn can find some solid evidence. Where is Finn, anyway?"</p><p>"He's running down a lead. He said he wanted to go alone."</p><p>"God help us." Kurt muttered as he left the room.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn parked the car in front of an eerily familiar apartment building. He had been to the house countless times but going now just seemed wrong. He rang the bell of the apartment several times with no answer, his finger grazing softly over the name on one of the apartments - Rachel Berry. Just when he was about to give up and leave, he heard a voice behind him.</p><p>"Finn? Is that you?"</p><p>Finn turned and saw Mercedes standing there. Her face lit up when she saw that it was him. "Oh my God! It is you! Hi."</p><p>The two friends hugged.</p><p>"Good to see you. How are you? It's been a while." She said. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Well, since yesterday at the party." He stated. Mercedes' face filled with fake-confusion.</p><p>"Party? What are you talking about?"</p><p>"Come on, Cedes." Finn murmured. "Yesterday. Dylan Ashworth's house. I saw you, you saw me."</p><p>Mercedes shook her head.</p><p>"No, sorry. You must be confused." She replied. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Look, Mercedes. I'm investigating a homicide. 19 year old Nina Clausen. I think Ashworth's involved."</p><p>Mercedes' face dropped and she looked down.</p><p>"Maybe we should talk inside." She said. Finn nodded and followed her inside…</p><p>"So… so why'd you run away from me yesterday?" Finn asked. Mercedes sighed.</p><p>"I don't know. I just… that party… those people. I didn't want you to think I was a part of that scene."</p><p>"Why were you there?"</p><p>"I was invited by the guy who hosted the party."</p><p>"Julian?"</p><p>"Yeah." She replied. Finn's eyes flickered around the room and trained on one of the photos on the mantel. It was Rachel in her wedding dress with Mercedes right after the wedding. Mercedes turned around and saw what he was looking at. She sighed. "How are you doing, Finn?"</p><p>"Oh, hanging in there." He replied, running a hand through his hair.</p><p>"I assumed you'd be back in Texas."</p><p>"Oh, no. I couldn't stay there, so you know, I came out here. Got a little down at the beach."</p><p>"The trailer down by the cove?" She asked. Finn nodded and she giggled. "Of course you did."</p><p>"So if I wanted to look for this Julian guy, where would I look?"</p><p>"I heard he hangs out at the Amal Hotel."</p><p>"Okay. Thanks a lot." Finn said and he started to walk out the door.</p><p>"Hey… we should get together some time, catch up."</p><p>Finn nodded.</p><p>"Sure." He replied. He then sighed. "Look, um… stay away from Julian… and Ashworth. Okay?"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. Chapter 20</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After a short while in the station concocting a plan, they decided to go after Julian. However, with a high profile person such as Julian, they couldn't just bring him into the station as his attorney would get him out before he even sat down in the interrogation room. No, they needed a better idea and Finn - crazy as he may be - came up with it. He tracked Julian's car and quickly found him on a slightly abandoned road. Perfect. Finn turned on his siren and forced Julian to pull over. Finn got out of his car and walked over to Julian's convertible sports car.</p><p>"I'm sorry, did I do something wrong, Officer?" Julian asked.</p><p>"Uh… Detective. You know, I haven't written a traffic summons in god knows how long. But when I noticed that you had…"</p><p>Finn kicked one of the side mirrors of Julian's car, causing it to come flying off.</p><p>"A broken side mirror, I just couldn't help myself right, because broken mirrors just drive me crazy. Well, more accurate assessment would be 'drive me crazier'. So why don't you get out of the car?"</p><p>Julian sighed and started to clamber out.</p><p>"Let's go, let's go, let's go!" Finn exclaimed as Julian stood facing him. Finn then threw Julian against the front of the car. Finn then searched Julian and took a black book out of Julian's pocket and he dropped it on the ground. "Oh… what is that?"</p><p>"That's private." Julian snapped.</p><p>"No, no, no. California statute 1249… or better known as the five second rule. Once something falls on the ground, it becomes public knowledge. What do we got here? Names, addresses and phone numbers, oh my!"</p><p>Suddenly, Finn's phone rang and he picked it up.</p><p>"Hey, Q. I'm here with our good friend, Julian. He seems like a real dick but he smells incredible."</p><p>"Yeah? Well, cut him loose. We have nothing."</p><p>Finn sighed and hung up the phone. He then turned to Julian.</p><p>"You know what I want to know? Who killed Nina Clausen?"</p><p>Julian looked at him and smirked.</p><p>"I don't know who that is, Detective." He responded. Finn then leaned it real close and whispered in his ear…</p><p>"I'd get that side mirror fixed, because I promise you that you don't want me pulling you over again…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Quinn?" Tina said, walking over to her. The cops were back at the station and were discussing future routes for the case.</p><p>"Yeah, what's up Tina?"</p><p>"I got that information for you. The number of your daughter's boyfriend, It belongs to Chauncy Perkins, a surfing instructor who goes by the name of C-Dawg."</p><p>"C-Dawg?" Quinn spat. Tina took a deep breath.</p><p>"He's 19." She murmured. Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"HE'S 19?!" Quinn shouted. Haley was only 15, much too young to be dating someone like that. Tina hadn't even reached the worst part yet. Far from it.</p><p>"And he has three priors for pickpocketing."</p><p>"HE'S GOT A RECORD? Is there anything else?"</p><p>Tina looked down. She was a little scared at how Quinn would react to this next one.</p><p>"I'm gonna need you to do your best to just remain calm for this. Check out his facebook page." She murmured, turning her laptop towards Quinn. Quinn's eyes widened. The man's profile picture was the half naked photo of her daughter. Suddenly, Finn strutted into the precinct, eating an apple. Quinn ran over to him.</p><p>"Hey!" She said.</p><p>"Yeah?"</p><p>"Are you available?"</p><p>"For what?"</p><p>"To kill the punk that's dating my daughter." She spat. Finn smirked and shrugged. He nodded.</p><p>"I'll make time for that…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn parked in the parking lot of the beach and they stepped out of the car.</p><p>"Look, I'm not all that comfortable, and frankly, not suited to be the voice of reason." Finn said. Quinn didn't respond. She just took out her gun and handed it to Finn.</p><p>"Hold that for me." She snapped.</p><p>"But, I would remiss if I did not remind you that former cops do not fare well in prison."</p><p>Quinn stormed over to C-Dawg's van and she scowled at the license plate that read 'DAWGSTYL'. Quinn banged on the window of the van until a man stepped out, a beer in his hand. He was clearly high as well. He looked like a typical surfer with his bandana, hawaiian shirt and slippers.</p><p>"S'up?" He drawled. "You two looking to get wet?"</p><p>"No, I'm Haley's mom." Quinn snapped. Chauncy furrowed an eyebrow.</p><p>"Which Haley? I got a few."</p><p>At that point, Quinn charged at Chauncy and Finn had to hold her back.</p><p>"Woah, woah, woah, woah, woah! No, no, no! Just… think about where you're gonna put the body." He murmured. Quinn slowly calmed down and turned back to C-Dawg.</p><p>"The one on your Facebook page." She spat. Realisation dawned on C-Dawg's face.</p><p>"Oh, yeah? She is smokin'. Nice work, mom. But I can see where she gets it from. Yowzas!" He exclaimed, admiring Quinn's body. She lunged at him once again and Finn had to hold her back.</p><p>"He needs to be taught a lesson! He's got a record, Finn!" Quinn spat. "Pickpocketing, three time loser and on top of that… Which Haley? WHICH HALEY?!"</p><p>"I understand. I understand. But we don't want to have another heart attack now, do we?"</p><p>"Finn, I am prepared to give my own life to TAKE his! I'm okay with that, Finn."</p><p>"I understand. But look, I've got an idea. It's not a great idea. But maybe Chunky here can help us out."</p><p>"Uh, it's Chauncy." Chauncy butted in.</p><p>"Shut up!" Finn snapped. Finn then turned back to Quinn again. "Keep in mind, it's not a great idea…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>A couple of hours later, once the sun had set, Julian was throwing a massive party in his mansion. Finn and Quinn weren't in the thick of it though. They were sitting at the border of the party, watching as C-Dawg walked into the party.</p><p>"This really wasn't a good idea." Quinn muttered. "I mean, what if something happens to C-Dawg?"</p><p>Finn looked at her.</p><p>"What, are you serious?"</p><p>Quinn smirked.</p><p>"No. If he dies, he dies."</p><p>"Yeah, it's a win-win." Finn agreed. They watched as C-Dawg walked towards Julian and 'accidentally' bumped into him. What they didn't see but knew what was happening was that C-Dawg was using his pickpocketing skills to snag that black book from Julian before walking away. Covering it with a napkin, he covertly slipped it to Finn.</p><p>"Hey, we cool now?" He asked Quinn. She glared at him.</p><p>"Not now. Not ever." She growled.</p><p>"Look, just get out of here, C-Dawg." Finn advised him. "And by here, I mean the state of California."</p><p>Once he was gone, Quinn and Finn sat closer together and opened the book.</p><p>"All right, let's see here." Finn said, flicking through the pages. "Avalon, Birdie, Samson."</p><p>"What is that?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"It's the names." Finn murmured. "They're all coded. Girls, too."</p><p>Quinn sighed.</p><p>"So we risked our shields to get a book we can't even read?"</p><p>Finn's brain was whirring at a million miles an hour.</p><p>"I may know someone…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Yawning, Mercedes stumbled into her living room and over to the door. It was extremely late and someone had rang the bell, waking her up. She opened it and saw Finn standing there.</p><p>"Hey, Finn!" She exclaimed.</p><p>"May I?" Finn asked. Mercedes nodded and Finn walked inside. "So, Julian was at the hotel, just like you said. And just so I… have a complete understanding, he throws parties like the one at Ashworth's place? Pretty girls, not-so-pretty guys. And you just… what? Just happened to be there?"</p><p>"What are you getting at, Finn?" She asked. Finn took out Julian's black book from his pocket and showed it to her.</p><p>"This is Julian's." He explained. "It's full of the names of all of his clients, and the names of the girls that are paid to hook up with 'em. Guess whose name's in here?"</p><p>"Give me the book." She snapped, snatching it from him. She flipped through the book and furrowed her eyebrow.</p><p>"Um… these are all in code. How did you know that I…"</p><p>She spun around and faced him, her eyes blazing.</p><p>"You didn't." She growled. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Look, I am not judging you." He said, gently.</p><p>"You're not judging me? Are you kidding? You should see your face. You totally manipulated me! Get out!"</p><p>"Look, I'm sorry. All right. I know how hard this is for you. All right, it's not easy for me either. Look, you were Rachel's friend…"</p><p>"Yes, I was! You were not the only person who lost her!" She cried.</p><p>"Look, Rachel, this is not about us!" Finn shouted. "They killed someone! So I need to understand what's in this book. Are you gonna help me or not?"</p><p>Mercedes took a deep breath.</p><p>"Julian comes up with the nicknames." She murmured. "He picks something that reminds him of the person."</p><p>"What's yours?"</p><p>"Madison. Because I'm from Wisconsin. I don't know the names of anyone else."</p><p>Finn nodded.</p><p>"Thank you. If I can figure out the code of Dylan Ashworth, I can prove that he was with Nina the night she was killed."</p><p>"He wasn't." Mercedes murmured. Finn, who was walking towards the door, turned back to face her.</p><p>"How do you know?"</p><p>"Because he was with me, all right?" She eventually admitted. Tears streamed down her face. "Just leave, okay?" She sobbed. Finn nodded and walked out the door. A couple of minutes later, there was another knocking on the door. Assuming it was Finn who had just forgotten something, she walked over to the door and opened it. Standing there was Julian.</p><p>"Hello, sugar." He smirked. "I am so sorry I didn't call but surprises are fun, right?"</p><p>He then noticed the tear stains on her face.</p><p>"You all right?" He asked. Mercedes nodded.</p><p>"Yeah. Just… been a tough day."</p><p>"We've all had those." He remarked. "Luckily though, I know just the cure for tough days. Fantastic nights."</p><p>"Right. Thanks, but I'm not really in the mood for a party." She said. She started to shut the door but Julian stopped her.</p><p>"Yeah, you are…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Tina! You came!" Marley exclaimed as Tina walked into the forensics lab.</p><p>"Well yeah, you said you had something to show me." She replied. "So what have you got?"</p><p>"The lab results came back on the substance on Nina Clausen's feet. Tree sap. From a Red Dawn Full Moon Japanese Maple."</p><p>"Are you making that name up?" Tina laughed.</p><p>"No. Very rare. I ran a search on any murders in which the victims were found with similar sap. Three turned up. All unsolved. All women, all with bruising on their wrists."</p><p>"Wow, that's impressive."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Damn, so there's four victims?" Quinn asked. Tina had just told her the updated story.</p><p>"Yup." Tina replied.</p><p>"Okay, get me whatever you can on each one of the cases." Quinn ordered. Tina nodded.</p><p>"I got you." Tina responded. Her eyes then widened when she saw who was sitting in the bullpen. It was Santana and she didn't look happy. Quinn gulped as she walked over to her sister.</p><p>"Hey, San! What brings you to the office?"</p><p>"Chauncy Perkins." Santana stated. "Please tell me you didn't…"</p><p>"It wasn't my idea, it was Finn's idea. I just wanted to scare him, just rough him up a…"</p><p>"Rough him up? He's 19, Quinn!" She exclaimed.</p><p>"Exactly! Technically, he's an adult."</p><p>"A 19 year old who you threatened into committing a crime!"</p><p>"It was a misdemeanor, not a felony. Do you know he goes by the name of C-Dawg?"</p><p>"His parents called me." Santana snapped. Quinn scowled.</p><p>"Snitch." She muttered under her breath.</p><p>"And he broke up with Haley." She continued. "And mind you, she is less upset about him than she is ashamed of her mother."</p><p>"But he really broke up with her?" Quinn asked, failing to hide the grin from her face. Santana shot her a dead glare.</p><p>"Quinn…" She said, dangerously low.</p><p>"Do you know that he posted her picture… the picture… on his facebook page?"</p><p>Santana's eyes widened.</p><p>"He did?" Santana said. Quinn nodded furiously.</p><p>"Uh-huh. And when I told him I was Haley's mom, he said, Which Haley? Followed by, I got a few. As if he's got a whole posse of girls named…"</p><p>"Okay, listen. I get it. I'm gonna have a little chat with C-Dawg. Don't wait up for me."</p><p>"It's okay, San. I already handled it." Quinn laughed.</p><p>"I got a few, that's what he said?"</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>"Hell to the no!" Santana shouted, before storming towards the elevator.</p><p>"Hey, San, don't go doing nothing that I have to arrest you for!"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Chapter 21</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Tina, what are you working?" Captain Hummel asked as he walked into the room. Tina was scribbling furiously on a large whiteboard and she turned to face him.</p><p>"A lead on the Clausen case." She replied, holding up Julian's black book. "The names in this book are all in code. Like 'Madison' for a girl from Wisconsin. Dylan Ashworth's 'Enzo', for his cars."</p><p>"So Dylan Ashworth is in there? Can you link him to Nina Clausen?" Kurt asked. Tina sighed.</p><p>"No. He was with another girl that night. But I do think Nina is in here somewhere. This girl's last entry in the book was the night of Nina's murder. Her name is Charlotte."</p><p>"Wasn't Nina from North Carolina?" Kurt asked.</p><p>"Yeah, but the codename of the guy that she was with is Montana."</p><p>"Okay, so Montana. So he's from Billings, Boseman."</p><p>"Or it could be anywhere else. Big Sky, Yellowstone…"</p><p>"Hannah?" Kurt cut in. "Like Hannah Montana. I'm joking." Kurt laughed.</p><p>"Or Joe Montana. The quarterback?"</p><p>Kurt rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Yeah, I know who Joe Montana is. He played for the 49ers." Suddenly, Kurt gasped as he realised something. "Named for the Gold Rush. The Ashworths were the original 49ers."</p><p>"But Nina wasn't with Dylan that night."</p><p>"So what if Montana is another Ashworth? The father, Henry?"</p><p>Tina nodded.</p><p>"It's possible. Julian could have supplied him with the girls and he would have access to his son's Ferrari."</p><p>"As well as his own oil fields." Marley said, walking into the room. "Captain. Tina. In an effort to impress that will, no doubt, go unnoticed, I looked into the other dead women. One body was on land owned by an Ashworth oil subsidiary. And this…" She said, taking out her ipad and showing them a picture of a house. "Is the Ashworth mansion in Bel Air. Note the front of the house. Specifically, the trees."</p><p>"Red Dawn Full Moon Japanese Maples." Tina murmured.</p><p>"What does that mean?" Kurt asked.</p><p>"It means Henry Ashworth is probably our killer…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Julian pulled up to the Ashworth estate and he 'guided' Mercedes out of the car and into the house.</p><p>"Why didn't you tell me we were coming to Dylan's?" She asked. "Julian, what is this?"</p><p>"This is your evening, darling." Julian said. "Perhaps longer. Who knows? But, there is someone I'd like you to meet."</p><p>Suddenly, Henry Ashworth stepped out from inside the house to greet them.</p><p>"Dylan's father, Henry Ashworth." He introduced her. The man held out a hand.</p><p>"Pleasure to meet you." Henry said. She shook his hand.</p><p>"I'm uncomfortable." She snapped. "I think I'd like to leave. I'm sorry."</p><p>"Oh, well, I'm sorry to hear that. Another time, maybe?" He said. Mercedes nodded and started to walk away but Julian caught her arm.</p><p>"Hey, hey. Are you all right? You seem a little stressed." He said.</p><p>"I am. I want to leave. Now." She spat.</p><p>"Yeah, sure, I get that. But here's the thing, darling Mercedes… this thing is happening. So, you can either fight it or you can go with it. I can assure you, the latter is much more fun."</p><p>His tone remained unchanged even while he was threatening her. She turned and started to run away but a bodyguard caught her. He immediately put a hand over her mouth, silencing her screams, and he dragged her back towards the house. In the process, her gold bracelet slip off her wrist but she didn't notice.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn pulled up to the Bel Air mansion moments later and at first glance, everything seemed normal. However, a bodyguard stepped up to them the moment they got out of their car.</p><p>"Hey there, buddy. We're here to see Henry Ashworth." Quinn snapped.</p><p>"Sorry. It's a private function." The guard said. Finn looked at Quinn and they smirked.</p><p>"Well, this is awkward…" Finn said.</p><p>"I'm embarrassed." Quinn added.</p><p>"Look at us, showing up without an invitation." Finn remarked. Quinn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"You didn't get invited? I got invited." She responded.</p><p>"So, can I be your plus one?"</p><p>"I don't think so." The guard snapped. "You leave now or I'll be forced to have to call…"</p><p>"Say it. Please say it." Quinn begged, holding back laughter.</p><p>"Come on, man. Say it." Finn coaxed him.</p><p>"The police." The man finished. Finn and Quinn cheerfully waved at him.</p><p>"Hello! We're already here! How's that for quick service?" Finn said, showing the man his badge. As he looked down to take his badge out of his pocket, he noticed a glint of gold off to the side of them. He leaned down and picked up an extremely familiar gold bracelet from the ground. Without warning, Finn struck the guard across the face as hard as he could, knocking the man unconscious. Picking up the gold bracelet, Finn then sprinted into the house.</p><p>The scene that greeted him when he walked in was… weird. Women in their lingerie and underwear were everywhere. There was no way he'd be able to find Mercedes in this place…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Help! Please let me out! I don't want to do this! Please!" Mercedes shouted, banging on the doors of the house. However, due to the booming music downstairs, nobody heard her.</p><p>"Aww… don't fight it." Henry murmured. "Enjoy it."</p><p>He then threw her against the ground. She grabbed a vase from beside her and smashed it against his head, knocking him over. She then snatched the key to the room from on top of his dresser and unlocked the door. She ran out of the room and out of the mansion. She sprinted, barefoot, down the road. As Finn burst into one of the rooms, he noticed movement from outside the window. His eyes widened as he saw Mercedes sprinting down the road and he saw an SUV rev its engine and follow her. He smashed his way out the window and started running after her. He finally made it to his car and he quickly joined the chase. His heart dropped as he watched Mercedes stumble and fall, off-balance because of her dress and bare feet. Henry Ashworth was fast approaching and was set to run over her in less than 3 seconds. Leaning out of the window, Finn gritted his teeth and aimed his gun. He then fired two rounds at the two rear tires of the car, causing it to go flying in the air and flipping over Mercedes in a huge crash. Finn parked quickly and ran over to Mercedes.</p><p>"Hey Mercedes. You okay?" He asked, helping her to her feet.</p><p>"Yeah, I think so." She whispered.</p><p>"You sure?"</p><p>Finn helped her up to her feet and together, they walked away from the totalled car. As they did, the car suddenly exploded in a massive fireball. They didn't even turn back…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn walked into her house that night and saw Haley asleep on the sofa, a book in her hands. Silently, Quinn grabbed a blanket and gently covered her daughter with it. As she kissed her daughter lightly on the forehead, Haley woke up.</p><p>"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to wake you." Quinn whispered. Haley glared at her and Quinn sighed. "Hey. I'm sorry about my behaviour. Some of my behavior, with Chauncy today. I let my emotions get the best of me, and I… and that will never happen again."</p><p>"It was just a picture, mom." Haley mumbled. "There <em>are </em>worse things in this world."</p><p>"Trust me, I know."</p><p>"And you think I don't, 'cause I'm just a sheltered girl who doesn't know anything about the real world."</p><p>Quinn shook her head.</p><p>"Look, now, Haley, in so many ways you know so much more about the world than I did at your age. I'm proud of that. But what you can't possibly understand yet is what it's like to have children. How scary it is to think about them in a world that's just full of dangerous things. I love you so much, Haley."</p><p>"I love you too, mom."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Mercedes was just about finished packing up her place when she heard a knock on the door and she saw Finn walk in.</p><p>"Hey." She said.</p><p>"Hey." Finn replied. He then reached into his pocket and took out the gold bracelet and handed it to her.</p><p>"Thank you." She said.</p><p>"So, how you doing?"</p><p>"Better now."</p><p>"Going somewhere?" Finn asked, pointing to the boxes. Mercedes nodded.</p><p>"Back to Wisconsin. I'm done with L.A."</p><p>"I know the feeling." Finn murmured.</p><p>"Thank you." She said. "For everything. And I'm sorry. I mean… I'm sorry for you. For your loss. Rachel's death hit me really hard, but I can't even imagine what it must be like for you."</p><p>"Thank you." Finn said.</p><p>"So, what about you?" She asked. "Think you'll stay in La La Land for the long haul?"</p><p>Finn chuckled.</p><p>"I don't know. I mean, look, this place is full of jackasses and traffic, but… I've found a couple of good spots."</p><p>"Good." Mercedes smiled.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That night, as Finn settled on his trailer sofa, he suddenly heard the sound of a truck beeping and an engine revving. Confused, he stood up and walked outside. He saw an L.A official truck connected to the Dutch RV and towing it away. As Detective Fabray walked out, the dutchmen ran over to her.</p><p>"No way, ma'am. You can't do this!"</p><p>Quinn shrugged.</p><p>"Sorry. But you guys are violating the city's parking ordinance."</p><p>"What about him?" The man snapped, pointing at Finn who was walking over.</p><p>"Oh, he's next!" Quinn exclaimed. The man scoffed.</p><p>"Later, lamzak." He said, walking away. Quinn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Lam-what?" She asked.</p><p>"It means numb nuts." He snapped in his thick accent.</p><p>"Oh. That's good to know." Finn joked. That night, Finn and Quinn sat in the two camping chairs outside his trailer and they clinked together two bottles of beer.</p><p>"You do understand that this is a public beach, and you're never gonna have complete privacy."</p><p>Finn shrugged.</p><p>"First time I came out here to meet Rachel's parents, she brought me here. It's where she used to come to, you know… clear her head. Get away from everything. This is her spot."</p><p>"Nice spot." Quinn remarked as the two of them gazed at the sunset…</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Chapter 22</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>15 years ago…</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>Finn sat at his favourite bar in El Paso, sipping a beer. It was Christmas Eve and Finn was on a month leave from the Navy. He was only 23 and it was his fifth year in the Navy. He had joined the ranks of the SEALs and had already completed 3 missions in SEAL team 7. Finn looked down the bar and saw the most gorgeous girl he had ever seen at the other end of the bar. She was sitting alone and digging into a steak. He watched as the bartender walked up to her.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"If you don't mind my asking, what's a pretty lady like you doing eating alone here on Christmas Eve?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Missed my flight home." She replied, politely.</em>
</p><p>"<em>Where's home at?" He asked.</em></p><p>
  <em>"Hey, Charlie. You know what I bet this lady wants for Christmas? Some peace and quiet." Finn remarked as he sipped his beer. "Me on the other hand… I'll have me another beer."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>As the bartender walked away, the lady turned to Finn.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Thanks." She said. "Been a lousy day. This'll be the first time I haven't been home for Christmas in… well, ever."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Still smiling. That's something." Finn replied. She beamed.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"So that's my excuse for drinking alone on Christmas. What's yours?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh, I'm not big on excuses. Besides… I'm not drinking alone now, am I?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She giggled.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No, you're not." She replied.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Now I just got one more question." Finn said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Hmm?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"You gonna finish that steak?" He asked. Rachel giggled.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Damn right I'm gonna finish it!"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"That a girl!" Finn exclaimed. She laughed. That night, the two of them stumbled back to Finn's place together and she walked in behind him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I want you to know I don't normally go home with guys I've met in bars." She said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh, good. That makes two of us." Finn joked. She laughed. As she stepped into the place, she took in the scenery. It was a studio apartment and there wasn't even a bed. Just a couch and a bundle of blankets on the floor.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Wow, it's… sparse." She commented. Finn laughed.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Yeah, I'm only here a couple of months a year. I have a month off from the Navy so…"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh, you're in the Navy? What do you do?" She asked.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Um… I'm a diver." Finn replied. She laughed. Finn raised an eyebrow. "What?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh, come on! You're obviously special ops! You've got a SEAL trident on your shoulder."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Finn looked at his shoulder and he chuckled when he saw the trident that ran down his arm.</em>
</p><p>"<em>Good catch." He muttered. "Yeah, SEAL Team 7."</em></p><p>
  <em>Rachel nodded. She then pointed to the bundle of blankets and pillows on the ground that had a small mattress underneath it.</em>
</p><p>"<em>That can't be comfortable." She remarked.</em></p><p>
  <em>"Well, it's better than a standard issue cot."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She then sat on the couch and took a swig of her beer.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Couch is comfy." She said. "It's a little rough around the edges but… I see some potential."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Yeah?" Finn smiled.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Yeah. Not such a bad Christmas." She remarked as she settled onto the sofa.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No. Not bad at all."</em>
</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn's eyes snapped open and he groaned in pain as he stood up. His heart was pounding from the hangover he was experiencing. He stumbled around the tailor for a moment before collapsing back on the couch.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"The man has no decency!" Quinn shouted as she looked out the window. Her neighbor, Sebastian Smythe, was putting up his Christmas decorations and rather than a couple of small lights, the man had placed light up candy canes, lights, reindeer and literally every Christmas decoration under the sun. "That's not just a few strands of twinkly lights. That's gaudy! Tasteless even! And with all the power he's using, he's gonna overpower our grid."</p><p>"The grid?" Santana laughed.</p><p>"Our power grid! This is real. We are vulnerable."</p><p>"Come on, Q. Every year the Smythes do this, and every year you complain about this." She reminded Quinn.</p><p>"Mom's consistent. One of the many qualities I admire." Luke remarked.</p><p>"Thank you, son. This time of year is not about decoration. This is about family. It's about togetherness." She said.</p><p>"Totally agree, mom." Haley agreed. "So can I count on you to drive me to Julie's house tomorrow night? She's having a few friends over and…"</p><p>"I'll drive you, Haley." Luke volunteered.</p><p>"In whose car?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"You know what? Sorry. Not until, you know, after tomorrow. You know, after we get our presents." Luke said. Quinn and Santana looked at each other and laughed.</p><p>"He thinks he's getting a car." Santana laughed and Quinn giggled.</p><p>"You're not getting a car, Luke." Haley scoffed.</p><p>"You're not getting a car." Quinn confirmed. Luke smirked and nodded.</p><p>"You guys! 'Sure'." He winked.</p><p>"You wink at me again. I dare you." Quinn spat. "Look, all year long, people are out and about, moving and shaking…"</p><p>"Having fun?" Haley commented.</p><p>"Not home." Quinn finished.</p><p>"Listen, your mother's right." Santana said. "It's the one time of year we are all in the same place for a few days."</p><p>"Yeah, so San and I are gonna take some time off, and we're gonna spend some family time together, whether you like it or not."</p><p>Suddenly, the lights in the house flickered and Quinn growled.</p><p>"Ok. SEBASTIAN!" She shouted, storming out of the house and over to the neighbor's. Sebastian, who was standing outside, smirked at her.</p><p>"Hey, Quinnie the Pooh!" Sebastian exclaimed. "Are we taking it to the next level over here, or what?"</p><p>"The grid. Have you considered the grid." Quinn snapped.</p><p>"The grid?" Sebastian asked.</p><p>"The electrical grid, Sebastian. I mean, with all this stuff, it's… it's like a fire hazard."</p><p>"You a fireman now, Q? Is that it?" Sebastian remarked sarcastically. Quinn growled and stepped over the fence. She squared up to Sebastian.</p><p>"Firemen don't carry guns, Sebastian." She muttered.</p><p>"You know what dentists carry? High-powered Waterpiks." Sebastian responded. "And floss."</p><p>"Quinn! Quinn? Get in here." Santana exclaimed running over. "Sorry, Sebastian!" She called. Quinn growled and she made an 'I'm watching you' gesture at Sebastian. In return, he somehow made a threatening flossing gesture.</p><p>"What? What the hell is that?" Quinn muttered.</p><p>"Sorry! The lights look great!" Santana called.</p><p>Across town, in an extremely busy intersection, a man was dressed up as Santa, ringing bells to raise money when he heard a woman's scream coming from above him. He looked to see a young woman freefalling and hurtling towards the ground, landing on a parked car with a massive CRASH!</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"First of all, he calls me Quinnie the Pooh! Then he makes some sort of threatening gesture with floss." Quinn complained. Her and Finn were walking into the latest crime scene and Quinn couldn't help but complain about her new partner.</p><p>"I didn't think it was possible to floss threateningly." Finn remarked.</p><p>"I mean, dealing with Sebastian is the WORST part of the season." She snapped. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"No, the worst part of the holiday season is, well… everything." He replied.</p><p>"Everything? You hate it all?"</p><p>"All right, guys." Tina said, walking over to them. "Our victim's name is Elena Tull, 25. Lived in the penthouse. Think she offed herself? Holidays could be hard for some people."</p><p>"Well, could be, but… if you're gonna take a swan dive, I doubt that you're worried about your feet getting cold on the way down." Quinn remarked, pointing at the victim's feet which were covered with socks. Finn gritted his teeth. The Santa behind him was incessantly ringing his shingle bell, unmoved that they were in an active crime scene.</p><p>"Hey, could you give it a rest? We're not exactly caroling out here." He snapped.</p><p>"Hey, come on man. The guy was just doing his job." Quinn said, walking over.</p><p>"Oh, doing his job? Yet another reason why I hate Christmas."</p><p>"Certain dentists notwithstanding, it's a time of year when people exhibit goodwill toward their fellow man. And I like that." Quinn remarked. Suddenly, a man ducked under the police tape into the crime scene.</p><p>"Oh my God!" He shouted. Presuming that it was the girl's boyfriend, Finn and Quinn walked over to him. However, he wasn't the boyfriend. Hell, he didn't even care about her. "My car!" He shouted. Finn turned to Quinn and raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Oh. What was that about goodwill?" Finn remarked. "Merry Christmas, Quinnie the Pooh."</p><p>Quinn rolled her eyes and snapped…</p><p>"Bah humbug."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn and Finn walked into the victim's penthouse apartment and Finn wolf whistled.</p><p>"Nice digs for a nurse." He remarked.</p><p>"It's not hers." Quinn replied. "Tina's looking into the owner. There's a company's name on the deed."</p><p>"Hey guys!" Marley exclaimed, running over to them. "Could you guys come with me to the veranda real quick?"</p><p>The two detectives nodded and followed the forensics expert onto the balcony. There, Marley started explaining the case.</p><p>"Victim fell from this ledge, leaving us three options… accident, suicide and murder. This is the question I set out to solve…"</p><p>"She was pushed." Finn interrupted, pointing at a dent in the railing of the balcony. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"Yup. Takes force to get that kind of damage." Quinn agreed. Marley sighed.</p><p>"I had a different and much more… thorough approach, but yes, she was pushed."</p><p>Suddenly, Tina walked up to them, a file in her hands.</p><p>"The apartment's under a holding company owned by the victim's boyfriend, an Eduardo Karofsky."</p><p>Finn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Wait… Eddie Karofsky?" He murmured. Tina shrugged.</p><p>"Who's Eddie Karofsky?" Quinn asked. Finn sighed.</p><p>"He's only the nephew of David Karofsky, the leader of the Karofsky Cartel…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That afternoon, Finn and Quinn walked into Kurt's office to hear his notes on the case so far. He was grinning when they walked in.</p><p>"Christmas came early and Santa put a top cartel associate under the LAPD's tree. Eddie freaking Karofsky." He said, pointing to a family tree he had made. Eddie Karofsky was in the second highest tier of the cartel, right under David Karofsky, the head.</p><p>"I knew Eddie back in Texas." Finn remarked. "Juarez's most eligible drug lord. He's the homicidal nephew of David Karofsky, and I almost had him busted on a kidnapping case down in Texas but the day before trial, our only witness ended up without a head."</p><p>"Which made it hard to testify." Quinn remarked. Finn rolled his eyes.</p><p>"And they say women are much smarter than men." He murmured. Quinn blushed.</p><p>"Well, Eddie screwed up this time, 'cause he's in our town and we're gonna nail his ass!" Kurt exclaimed.</p><p>"Just know we're gonna have our hands full." Finn warned them. "Eddie's not your normal scumbag."</p><p>"And we're not your normal cops." Quinn smiled. "Speaking of which, Captain…"</p><p>"Quinn, I understand that you had some time off scheduled this week, but we have to roll up our sleeves on this one. And I'm sorry to say that may mean missing out on some family time." Kurt said. Quinn knew him too well though. She smirked.</p><p>"In-laws in town?" She asked. Kurt laughed and eventually nodded.</p><p>"They land in an hour. Let's get to work!"</p><p>Quinn and Finn exited Kurt's office and moments later, Tina walked over to them.</p><p>"I got into Elena's phone. There's a string of texts with someone named 'H'."</p><p>Quinn and Finn read through the messages and their eyes widened.</p><p>
  <strong>He's onto us. I'm scared.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>We've gotta do something before he finds out.</strong>
</p><p>The messages all looked slightly menacing.</p><p>"Okay, H could be a lover and Eddie found out." Quinn suggested. Finn nodded.</p><p>"Yeah, let's go through all the contacts, look for any Hs. Henry, Hank…"</p><p>"Hector, Hugo." Quinn added. Finn looked at her and raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Hugo? No one has an affair with a Hugo." He remarked.</p><p>"Guys, are you done doing this whole wild guess thing or do you want to find out? Because Elena's meeting 'H' for coffee in 15 minutes."</p><p>"Perfect. I'm gonna go with Harvey." Finn decided as he walked away.</p><p>"I'm saying Hamburger." Quinn laughed.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>
  <strong>15 minutes later…</strong>
</p><p>"Hannah, Hannah! Anyone here named Hannah!"</p><p>The barista announced the name several names as she placed a drink on the counter. Finn and Quinn both looked at each other and laughed.</p><p>"Hannah." They said simultaneously.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0023"><h2>23. Chapter 23</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Finn and Quinn watched as a young Latina woman walked over and took her drinking. The two detectives walked over to her.</p><p>"Excuse me, ma'am? Are you here to meet Elena Tull?" Finn asked.</p><p>"Who are you?" She asked.</p><p>"We're with LAPD. Homicide." Quinn replied. Hannah took a deep breath and the three of them sat down at a table in the corner of the room.</p><p>"That son of a bitch." She spat. "He killed her, didn't he?"</p><p>"Who?" Finn asked, obviously knowing who she was about to say. However, she proved him wrong.</p><p>"No, you first." She snapped. "What do you know?"</p><p>"It doesn't work like that." Quinn remarked. "We ask the questions."</p><p>"Look…" Finn said quietly. "Let's start with an easy one. What was your relationship with Elena?"</p><p>"Friends. Uh… colleagues, I guess you can say." She replied.</p><p>"You're a nurse?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Journalist." She replied. "I'm on the city desk at the L.A Sentinel."</p><p>"What do you cover?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Crimes, drugs. Cartel's rise in L.A." She murmured. Finn laughed.</p><p>"All right, so I guess we can cut the crap. You know exactly who she was dating."</p><p>"Yeah, I know."</p><p>"You know what kind of man he is?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"More so than you." She responded fiercely. "I was writing a piece on Eddie Karofsky. Elena was my source"</p><p>"Did she know how dangerous he was?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"She knew. At first she didn't know who he was, but she was a bright girl and she caught on. Instead of ending it, she wanted to take him down."</p><p>"So why not go to the cops?" Finn asked.</p><p>"You guys have any luck catching Eddie yet?" She spat. Quinn glared at her.</p><p>"Elena is dead, and if Eddie finds out that she was <em>your </em>source, then your life's in danger too. So, I suggest that maybe you…"</p><p>"Keep a low profile, let you guys handle the case. Yeah, I know the drill."</p><p>"Look, I think you're underestimating what Eddie's capable of." Finn said gently.</p><p>"I know Eduardo Karofsky, Detective. And nothing would make me happier than if I was underestimating what you guys are capable of."</p><p>Finn and Quinn gritted their teeth. This woman was seriously getting on their last nerve.</p><p>"Do you know where we can find him?" Quinn asked. She nodded.</p><p>"He's not exactly keeping a low profile. He's a real party animal. Anyone can find him. Question is, who has the balls to take him down?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That night, Quinn and Finn walked into one of the biggest nightclubs in downtown L.A and sure enough, there on the balcony, sitting on a sofa with a girl beside him was Eddie Karofsky.</p><p>"Eddie?!" Finn exclaimed cheerfully. "Eddie Karofsky?! It is you! I haven't seen you since… since you chopped that dude's head off in El Paso. You look great!"</p><p>"Do you know him?" One of the women asked. Eddie laughed.</p><p>"He's just a drunk cop named Finn. That Texas twang… makes me feel at home." He remarked.</p><p>"Eddie… he's not from Texas." Finn told the woman, not losing his cheery tone.</p><p>"That's right. I'm from Juarez." Eddie growled.</p><p>"That's right." Finn said.</p><p>"Well, I have not had the pleasure." Quinn said, putting on the same jovial tone as Finn.</p><p>"Oh, my goodness! I'm so sorry!" Finn exclaimed. "Quinn, Eddie. Eddie, Quinn."</p><p>"I hear wonderful things about you." Quinn said. "In fact, I'm a little nervous. I've never been this close to a sociopath before."</p><p>Eddie didn't respond but he turned to the girl on the couch next to him.</p><p>"Ignore them, they harass me all the time. Just some nonsense from years ago." He murmured in her ear.</p><p>"No, no. Actually, this is about yesterday." Quinn said.</p><p>"Yeah, new nonsense!" Finn exclaimed, clapping in delight.</p><p>"He threw his girlfriend off a 13-story balcony." Quinn explained. "She crashed through the roof of a car, severed her spine, split her skull in two, it was a mess!"</p><p>"But you seem to be doing great!" Finn said. "And you're dating again, that's wonderful."</p><p>"Excuse me." The woman said and she started to get up but Eddie grabbed her arm and pulled her back down.</p><p>"Stay!" He growled. "Please. Now, they're leaving now."</p><p>"Oh, no, no. I'm so sorry." Finn exclaimed. "Please, no, we've got to go get evidence and subpoenas and warrants and all that jazz. We just saw you across the room and had to say hello, so… hello."</p><p>Finn and Quinn turned to walk away and as they did, Eddie called to Finn.</p><p>"Just like Texas, Finn! All bark, no bite." He remarked.</p><p>"Well this time, it's gonna stick." Quinn snapped.</p><p>"Okay." Eddie laughed. "Just be careful out there."</p><p>"Right, we wouldn't want to lose our heads." Finn joked.</p><p>"No, I mean that you know how cruel this world can be."</p><p>Finn slowly turned around to face Eddie, his face stormy.</p><p>"How's that?" He asked.</p><p>"Sometimes we lose people, right? People we love. Friends… partners… wives. Just, accidents happen, right?"</p><p>His face red with rage, Finn sprinted over to Eddie, grabbed him back the collar and dangled Eddie off the edge of the balcony. Quinn's eyes widened and she ran over to them.</p><p>"Finn, Finn!" She exclaimed in alarm but Finn ignored her.</p><p>"Are you talking about my wife?" He shouted.</p><p>"There's a room full of people here." Quinn warned him but once again, Finn took no heed.</p><p>"ANSWER ME!" He bellowed. "ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT MY WIFE?!"</p><p>Eddie merely smirked at him, despite the fact that he was dangling from 15 stories.</p><p>"Did I touch a nerve? I'm sorry, Detective." He grinned.</p><p>"Not like this, Finn." Quinn begged. "Too many people looking. Come on. He's trying to rattle your cage."</p><p>After a couple of deep breaths, Finn eventually pulled Eddie back onto the balcony. The man didn't seem at all scared of Finn. He just chuckled and straightened out his shirt.</p><p>"You should get a better date." Finn murmured to the girl on the couch as he walked away. Eddie raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Ah, cut her some slack, Finn. This time of year, no one wants to be alone!"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"What part of no mistakes did you not understand?!" Kurt snapped at Quinn later that night. "I got a dozen calls telling me that Finn nearly pushed Karofsky off a ledge."</p><p>"He didn't push him. It was more of a… a controlled dangle." Quinn argued.</p><p>"Finn, what's going on?" Kurt asked gently.</p><p>"The holidays make him a little nuts." Quinn said.</p><p>"A little nuts, I understand. My father-in-law can't stop telling me about how much he loves 'the gays' but you don't see me dangling him off a roof. Yet."</p><p>Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Eddie said something about Finn's wife. It set him off."</p><p>"Do I need to take him off the case?"</p><p>"No." Quinn shook her head. "We got this."</p><p>"Where is he now?"</p><p>"At a storage locker. He's going through some old El Paso case files. I think his history with Eddie is gonna help us on this one."</p><p>"Don't let him get emotional." Kurt murmured. "That's what Eddie wants."</p><p>Meanwhile, Finn had just unlocked his storage locker and he clicked on the light. Tears sprang to his eyes as he looked at the remnants of his old life. He could see the crib that he had built for his kid, the DVD collection that him and Rachel kept and many other old items. Finn ignored all of those and he opened a box containing a police file. He pulled it out and read the name 'Rachel Berry' at the bottom. As he began to close the box, his eyes flickered on something stuffed at the very back of the box. It was his old fire-engine red Christmas sweater. He smiled faintly as he was whisked to a flashback of when he last wore it…</p><p>
  <strong>14 years ago…</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>Finn and Rachel walked up to the front porch of her parent's house. It was his first Christmas he was spending with Rachel - the first of many he knew. Rachel always spent Christmas with her parents and their family so Finn was meeting the whole Berry clan for the first time. He was nervous to say the least and to top it off, Rachel forced him to wear a bright-red Christmas sweater.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I feel like a jackass." Finn remarked.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"It's a family tradition!" Rachel exclaimed.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Then why aren't you wearing one?" Finn laughed, pointing to her black coat.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Mine's upstairs in my old bedroom." She replied. "Come on, babe! Your family probably has some dumb traditions, too!"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"A silly sweater's the least of my family's issues. I haven't been home in 25 years."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Well, that's not me. Family is everything to me. You need to know the kind of life that you're signing up for. Ugly sweaters, drunk uncles. It's messy."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Yeah?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Yeah. So what do you say, cowboy? Are you up for all that?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Finn smirked.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I think I'd make a pretty good drunk uncle someday." He joked.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Yeah, you would." She giggled, kissing him. Suddenly, the door swung open and Rachel's father, Hiram Berry, opened the door. Finn spied Rachel's hall family behind him but that wasn't the worst thing. The worst thing was that none of them were wearing goofy Christmas sweaters but him. There was a brief silence before Hiram turned to speak to his daughter.</em>
</p><p>"<em>You got him to wear the sweater?" He remarked, his eyes wide. Finn then realised something and he turned to his girlfriend.</em></p><p>"<em>You set me up!" He exclaimed.</em></p><p>
  <em>"Sorry, babe." She laughed. Everyone in the house also started laughing hysterically.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"What? You all look ridiculous. I look festive." Finn joked. "So…"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"He's a keeper!" Hiram exclaimed. "I told you he was a keeper!"</em>
</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"He is part of the family!" Santana exclaimed.</p><p>"I'm just saying, if Finn is coming for dinner, you guys won't even notice that I'm gone." Haley stated. She was still trying to convince Quinn and Santana to let her go to the party but Santana wasn't budging. "It's the party of the year!"</p><p>"No, the party of the year is gonna be right here." Quinn responded. "A Fabray party!"</p><p>"Cause there ain't no party like a Fabray party, cause a Fabray party don't stop." Luke declared, clearly kissing ass to try and get a car for Christmas.</p><p>"That's the spirit!" Quinn grinned. "And you, miss, are gonna be here for the family dinner."</p><p>"Is there something you want to tell me?" Santana asked Quinn. Quinn furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.</p><p>"Hmm? About what?" She asked.</p><p>"I don't know, about a missing reindeer? Yeah, Sebastian Smythe stopped by and said someone stole one of his."</p><p>"Damn. That's terrible!" Quinn stated. "I'm gonna look into that. Which one was it? Let me guess, it was Prancer."</p><p>"You do know you can't steal his decorations, right, mom?" Haley stated.</p><p>"Hey! Show mom some respect!" Luke exclaimed.</p><p>"Hey! You are not getting a car, Luke." Santana snapped. "Q, did you take the man's reindeer?"</p><p>"I mean, this is a terrible crime. Even though he's been stealing power from us for years now. I just came home to get a cup of coffee and then I'll go back and after I'm wide awake from this coffee and solve the reindeer crisi…"</p><p>Suddenly, Quinn was cut off by the power completely cutting off in the house.</p><p>"DAMN YOU, SEBASTIAN!" Quinn shouted at the air.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0024"><h2>24. Chapter 24</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Finn strided into the forensics lab where Marley was cleaning up for the night.</p><p>"Hey, I need a…" Finn started but he was cut off.</p><p>"Favor?" She interrupted. "Sure, what's up?"</p><p>Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Wait, that's it? You'll just do me a favor just like that?"</p><p>"Yeah, dude. That's how I roll. You ask me to take a leap of faith, I'm already jumping."</p><p>Finn smiled.</p><p>"Thanks. Yeah, so I need your scientific expertise on a… personal matter."</p><p>"Hmm… paternity test?" She joked. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"What? No. Do I look like the kind of person who would be that irresponsible?" He snapped.</p><p>"I was kidding." She laughed. "What do you need, buddy?"</p><p>"OK, so if you do this for me, I'll do a favor for you in return."</p><p>"Finn, the whole point of a favor is to do it for free." She lectured him. "Okay? And then you just trust, the love will come back to you somehow. Favors are about faith."</p><p>"Oh, please don't ruin favors for me!" Finn sighed. "Look, I insist. Tit for tat."</p><p>"Fine, what do you need?"</p><p>"I need you to look at this for me." Finn said, handing Marley a file. She looked at the front of it and put on her glasses.</p><p>"Oh, this is from El Paso."</p><p>"Yeah, um… I'm just trying to find any inconsistencies. You know, they said that the aneurysm was caused by drinking too much but she rarely ever drank and hadn't for 9 months before she died because she was pregnant. Um… honestly, I don't know what I'm looking for: I just need some expert eyes on it."</p><p>"Sure." She said, opening the file. "Victim's name is Rachel Berry-Huds…" Her voice trailed off and her eyes widened. "Oh, uh… this is, um…"</p><p>"A coroner's report." Finn stated.</p><p>"I know, but, um…"</p><p>Suddenly, Quinn stormed into the room.</p><p>"Sebastian blew the grid!" She shouted. Marley quickly hid the file in her coat pocket and Quinn didn't notice it. "Our power grid! He overpowered his Christmas lights and blew my power."</p><p>She then finally took in the sombre atmosphere of the room.</p><p>"What's going on here?" She asked. Marley shrugged.</p><p>"Nothing." She replied. Quinn raised an eyebrow questioningly.</p><p>"Really?"</p><p>Marley sighed. She wasn't about to expose Finn so she made up an excuse on the fly.</p><p>"Finn was just asking me what he should get you as a Christmas gift." She replied.</p><p>"Well, speaking of gifts, Tina tracked down Elena Tull's purchase history. She just bought a wireless home security camera." She said.</p><p>"She was recording Eddie." Finn murmured in realisation.</p><p>"Yeah, and hopefully, that camera's still in the penthouse."</p><p>"Maybe Santa came early this year." Finn remarked. Quinn walked out the room first and after she was gone, Marley called Finn.</p><p>"Hey, Finn." She said. Finn turned around to face her.</p><p>"Yeah?"</p><p>"I got it." She said simply. Finn nodded at her thankfully.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>As Finn and Quinn walked to the entrance of Elena's apartment, they immediately noticed that the yellow police crime scene tape had been tampered with. They drew their guns and tiptoed into the house. Suddenly Finn sensed movement and he cocked his gun. Moment later, Hannah came out of the kitchen with her hands up.</p><p>"Don't shoot." She cried.</p><p>"What the hell are you doing here?" Quinn snapped.</p><p>"Elena borrowed something of mine. I needed to get it back." She replied and started to walk away but Finn held her back.</p><p>"Oh, not so fast, not so fast." He murmured. "I need to see what's in the bag."</p><p>"You got a warrant?" She snapped.</p><p>"We don't need one. You broke into a crime scene." Quinn stated. Hannah eventually sighed and handed Finn the bag. He leafed through it and eventually pulled out a small camera.</p><p>"Do you know how many journalists have been killed by the Karofsky cartel?" He growled.</p><p>"Over 400 in Juarez alone." She responded, her expression unchanged. "They think they can silence us through intimidation. I'm not scared."</p><p>"With any luck, what's on this is gonna put Eddie Karofsky away."</p><p>"Can I go now? Merry Christmas." She snapped and she walked out of the room. As soon as she was gone, Finn's phone rang. He answered it.</p><p>"Hello?" He said.</p><p>"How do you like the view from my apartment, Detective?" The family drawl of Eddie Karofsky greeted him. Finn immediately tensed up. As he did that, Quinn turned on the camera and realised that there was no card in it.</p><p>"Damn it, she took the SD card!" Quinn snapped.</p><p>"It's Karofsky." Finn murmured, pointing to his phone. Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Okay, you talk to him, I'm going after her." She said and jogged out of the apartment. Finn then put the phone back to his ear and started walking through the apartment, looking for the camera.</p><p>"Eddie! What's up, buddy?!" He exclaimed. "What, did you call to confess?"</p><p>"My conscience is clean." Eddie laughed. "I was thinking about our time in Texas. You were such a cowboy. What brought you out to L.A?"</p><p>"Ah, you know, smog, traffic, how 'bout you? Your uncle finally kick you out of Mexico?"</p><p>"Nah, I came for the girls, man." Eddie replied. "Same as you. Your hot Chicana wife was from here, wasn't she?"</p><p>Anger flooded through Finn like a tsunami wave.</p><p>"Mention my wife one more time." Finn growled.</p><p>"You're such a hothead, Finn. But I'm like you. I get angry and then… boom. I just explode."</p><p>At that moment, Hannah turned the key to her ignition and her car exploded in a blazing fireball. Quinn was thrown backwards in the blast but was far enough away to be otherwise unharmed. Finn, who had watched the whole thing from the apartment window, slowly put the phone down from his ear.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"The IED was triggered by a modified cell phone." Marley explained a couple of hours later. "It could have been detonated from anywhere by a text."</p><p>"Any way to figure out who was on the other end?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"It was a burner. Untraceable." Marley replied.</p><p>"He's playing with us." Finn growled from the corner of the room. "He called me to brag while we watched her burn."</p><p>"Marley, were you able to recover anything else from the victim?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"I found the SD card from Hannah's bag." She stated. "It was badly damaged, but there was a cache of data. There's a password on it, though. It's up with Tiny now."</p><p>"Okay, so we get him with the video." Quinn decided.</p><p>"How long is that gonna take? And what if it doesn't work?" Finn snapped.</p><p>"Even if it doesn't work, we will get him with something else." Quinn declared.</p><p>"All right, Q. We know exactly what he did and where to find him, and we're not doing a damn thing about it." He shouted.</p><p>"Okay, this is what he wants. He wants to get in our heads, make us go after him now, and make a mistake." She snapped.</p><p>"What he's doing is LAUGHING AT US!" Finn bellowed, his voice echoing across the morgue. "He killed Elena, he killed Hannah and he killed Rachel!"</p><p>"And you know that how? Because it's what he's telling you!" Quinn shouted. "It's what he wants you to believe."</p><p>"Marley, please tell her about the report!" Finn spat, turning to face her. Quinn turned around too.</p><p>"Report? What report?"</p><p>"I gave Marley Rachel's coroner's report to prove that someone did something to her. So please, tell her, Marley!"</p><p>"Sorry, Finn." Marley said, gently. "There wasn't anything to indicate it wasn't just an accidental aneurysm."</p><p>"But what about the report? Rachel didn't have any alcohol or drugs in her system. She was young too. Somebody must have poisoned her."</p><p>"There was nothing there." Marley murmured. Quinn put a hand on Quinn's shoulder.</p><p>"Hey, look, I know how hard this can be." Quinn said, gently.</p><p>"No, you don't." Finn spat and he tried to shove past her but Quinn stopped him.</p><p>"Finn, I need you to keep it together." She begged. "Can you do that?"</p><p>"I've been keeping it together, and look where that got me." Finn cried, a tear running down his cheek. "So why don't you keep it together for the both of us."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That night, Santana and Quinn sat together, wrapping gifts.</p><p>"I hope Luke's not too disappointed with these headphones." Santana remarked as she wrapped the gift. Quinn, who was playing with baby Alex, laughed.</p><p>"He'll be fine. Those headphones cost more than my first stereo." Quinn replied.</p><p>"Yeah, I know. But he really does think he's getting a car." Santana laughed. "And Rihanna keeps asking why she can't go to her friend's party tonight."</p><p>Quinn didn't say anything. She was in deep thought. Santana noticed her solemn mood.</p><p>"What's wrong?" She asked.</p><p>"Nothing." Quinn replied quietly. Santana sighed.</p><p>"Q, come on now. You're a terrible liar." She said. Eventually, Quinn nodded.</p><p>"Finn." She murmured quietly.</p><p>"I guess I should start asking, what's wrong with Finn?"</p><p>"Well, this cartel guy keeps messing with his head, trying to make him think that he had something to do with his wife's death."</p><p>Santana's eyes widened.</p><p>"Did he?" She whispered. Quinn shook her head.</p><p>"No. He's baiting him, and it's working. I'm afraid he's gonna hurt somebody. Or even go kamikaze renegade mode and go after the guy himself."</p><p>"I know I'm telling you something you probably already know, but you need to be there for him."</p><p>"I'm trying, believe me, but he's not having it." Quinn murmured.</p><p>"You know, this time last year… he probably thought that this Christmas, he would be with his wife and baby. Now he's alone. Can you imagine that?" Santana stated. Quinn took a deep breath and shook her head, holding Alex in her arms.</p><p>"No. I can't."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn lay in his trailer once again but this time, he actually wasn't drinking. Instead of pouring drinks, Finn was pouring over the case file of his wife's death, searching for inconsistencies. He knew better than anyone that Rachel was extremely careful about her body: she didn't drink, do drugs, smoke, she didn't have high cholesterol/blood sugar and she was young. She was the last person he'd expect to have an aneurysm and what's more, the autopsy didn't show too much damage to her brain from the aneurysm. However, try as he might, Finn couldn't find anything to back up his belief. Frustrated, Finn threw the case file across his trailer and he flipped his coffee table over in anger, smashing it to smithereens. As he admired the wreckage, sitting on his nightstand, Finn noticed a small snowglobe - another remnant from his time with Rachel. Finn was pulled into yet another flashback, this one exactly one year ago…</p><p>
  <em>It was midnight on Christmas morning and Finn and Rachel decided to open their presents from each other.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Ooh, what's in your pocket?" Rachel asked, pointing to a small black box sticking out of Finn's robe pocket. He smiled and handed her her Christmas present. She opened it to see a gorgeous gold pendant with a gold circle dangling from it and in that circle was an engraved letter R.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh, my God!" She exclaimed. "Oh, it's so beautiful."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Merry Christmas." Finn murmured.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Thank you." She smiled. "Here, help me." She said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Finn nodded and placed the necklace round her neck before kissing her gently.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh, it's so pretty!" She beamed, tears of joy leaking out of her eyes. "Thank you."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"You're welcome." He replied.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Okay, your turn!" She exclaimed, handing him a small box. Finn raised an eyebrow.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"How did you get a remote control fire truck inside of here?" Finn remarked, shaking the box gently.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Stop!" She giggled.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"A train set?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No, open it!"</em>
</p><p>"<em>Grenade launcher?"</em></p><p>
  <em>"Better." She replied. Finn raised an eyebrow.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Ok, babe. You set the bar pretty high though. I mean, what's better than a grenade launcher?" He asked as he opened the gift. He got his answer pretty soon. There, lying inside the box, was a positive pregnancy test. Finn's eyes filled with tears. "Does this mean that…"</em>
</p><p>"<em>Yes. You're gonna be a dad!" She murmured, kissing him passionately. As Finn rest his head against hers, he knew that there was no way he would ever be able to live life without her and every moment of every day, he thanked his lucky stars that she missed her flight that night. A life without her was simply a life not worth living.</em></p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn couldn't take it anymore. Every day, waking up with a searing pain in his heart like half of him had been ripped away without warning. Every night going to bed knowing that she wouldn't be there and would never be again. Knowing that he would never get the chance of being a husband again, he would never be a father, never be a grandpa, an uncle. He loaded a bullet into his pistol and carefully put the gun under his chin. Suddenly, right before he finally pulled the plug on the train wreck of a life he was living, the door to his trailer swung open and Quinn walked inside. She took in the wreckage of his trailer and she sighed.</p><p>"Uh… look, I came to apologise." She murmured. "I need to be a little more understanding about… how hard this time of year is for you."</p><p>Finn looked at her, his facial expression inscrutable however Quinn did see traces of tears on his cheeks.</p><p>"Why don't you go home, Q? Go be with your family."</p><p>Quinn ignored him. She pointed at the gun that was lying next to him.</p><p>"Is that gun for Karofsky?" She asked, knowing full well that it wasn't. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Don't go asking questions you don't want the answers to." Finn replied.</p><p>"Well, here's one I need answered." She said, sitting down next to him. "If you go and kill Karofsky in cold blood, what's left for you?"</p><p>Finn looked her right in the eye when he responded.</p><p>"What's left for me now?" He asked. Quinn sighed.</p><p>"If you really feel that way, then you need to go ahead and turn that thing on yourself. Look, Finn… we don't know yet if Karofsky had anything to do with Rachel. The best way to find out is to arrest him for the murders of two women we <em>know </em>he killed. Once we have him, we can find out the rest."</p><p>"What if he pleads down, or walks?"</p><p>"If we get him the right way, and he walks, I will help you find him."</p><p>"I'm not asking for your help, Quinn."</p><p>"I know." She replied, standing up. "You never do."</p><p>Finn eventually stood up and grabbed his coat. He then walked up to Quinn and looked her right in the eye.</p><p>"But I know he killed her." He growled. "So one way or another, it's either him or me."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0025"><h2>25. Chapter 25</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Quinn and Finn walked into the precinct once again at almost midnight but to their surprise, Tina and Kurt were still there, huddled over Tina's desk.</p><p>"What are you still doing here?" Quinn asked Kurt. "I thought you got a promotion so you can go home early."</p><p>"He's avoiding his in-laws." Tina laughed. Kurt shook his head.</p><p>"No, I'm closing a double homicide." Kurt responded.</p><p>"So he doesn't have to commit one." Tina chimed in. "But we did crack the password for the SD card."</p><p>"You got video?" Finn growled quietly, running over.</p><p>"Yeah, but it's not that great quality." Tina sighed. "It's tough to ID who Elena's with."</p><p>She played the video but unfortunately, the angle only showed the backs of them. They watched as the back of the man pushed Elena over the balcony and then walked out.</p><p>"That's Eddie!" Finn exclaimed. "His clothes, the way he walks… it's him."</p><p>"Won't hold up in court. We need to see his face." Kurt murmured. As Eddie walked out the room, unseen by the cameras, Quinn slammed her hand on the table in frustration.</p><p>"I knew it. He's gonna walk." Quinn growled. This case meant so much to Finn and because he was not only her partner but one of her best friends, it meant a lot to her too. She glanced sideways at Finn, trying to gauge how he was going to react. His facial expression was strange though: he didn't look frustrated at all. He squinted his eyes at the screen.</p><p>"Play that again." Finn demanded.</p><p>"Finn, it doesn't matter. You can't see his face." Quinn said, gently.</p><p>"PLAY IT!" Finn bellowed. Frightened, Tina replayed the video for a couple of seconds before Finn shouted… "STOP!"</p><p>Tina stopped the video and Finn grinned.</p><p>"Look at the tree." He murmured, pointing at the Christmas tree in the corner of the room. "Those big, gaudy bulbs."</p><p>"Finn, we get it. You hate the holiday." Kurt rolled his eyes. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"No… Tina, zoom in one that one." He said, pointing to it. As Tina zoomed in on the bauble, the image in the reflection of it became more and more clear: Eddie Karofsky's face stared back at them.</p><p>"It's him." Finn growled.</p><p>"Go get the son of a bitch!" Kurt exclaimed as Finn and Quinn stormed out of the room.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn strutted into the club once again and they saw Eddie at the bar, sitting and talking to a woman. Finn walked over and sat at the bar next to Eddie.</p><p>"Excuse me." Finn said to the woman and she walked away, leaving just Eddie and the two detectives to talk. Quinn waved cheerfully at Eddie and even Finn had to smile.</p><p>"Well, you're in a good mood, Detective." Eddie remarked. "Finally find that holiday spirit?"</p><p>"You know, sometimes it just takes getting that perfect gift." Finn replied. "And I got a great one today. You know what it is? A movie. So let me set it up… so you got this idiot from Juarez, right? And he walks into this condo. Beautiful condo."</p><p>"No, no, you're telling it all wrong!" Quinn exclaimed. Finn laughed.</p><p>"Okay, you tell it, you tell it, you tell it." He giggled.</p><p>"You got to set the stage." She explained. "Chestnuts roasting. There's a chill in the air. All of a sudden, a man pushes a helpless woman off a balcony to her death, all on camera."</p><p>"All on camera!" Finn announced, clapping his hands in glee. Eddie raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Is that supposed to mean something to me?" He asked.</p><p>"Oh, oh. It means something to me. Does it not mean something to you?" Finn asked.</p><p>"He's in the movie. It doesn't mean anything?!" Quinn remarked. Suddenly, Eddie made a grab for a gun but Finn was 17 steps ahead of him. Finn slapped a pair of handcuffs on Eddie's wrists before the man could even blink. Finn and Quinn then dragged him through the club and they didn't notice Eddie mutter to one of his men.</p><p>"Call him." He whispered to his man as Finn and Quinn dragged him out the room.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Fifteen minutes later, a man walked to the gate of Quinn's house, a gift-wrapped box in his hands. He knocked on the door and moments later, Santana opened it.</p><p>"Happy holidays, Ms. Lopez." The unfamiliar man said. "I have a delivery for your friend from LAPD."</p><p>"Wow, what is it?" Santana asked, cheerfully.</p><p>"I'm not supposed to say." He replied. "I guess it's a surprise."</p><p>"Oh, okay." Santana chuckled.</p><p>"It's a pretty heavy surprise. Do you mind if I set it down inside?" He asked.</p><p>"Oh, I'm sorry! Come on in!" She exclaimed. The man nodded and walked inside…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn dumped Eddie in the police car and when he was inside, Quinn slammed the door shut and turned to Finn.</p><p>"We got him!" She exclaimed. "The right way."</p><p>"Bah, humbug." Finn growled. Over his years in the SEAL unit, he had developed a sixth sense about the eerie and he could tell that something was not right. "Something's wrong."</p><p>Before Quinn could reply, his phone rang. Finn took it out.</p><p>"Answer it. It might be the North Pole telling you that you're on the naughty list."</p><p>Finn rolled his eyes and answered the phone.</p><p>"Yeah?" Finn said.</p><p>"Feliz Navidad, Detective." An unfamiliar voice spoke. Finn's hair stuck up on its end.</p><p>"Who is this?" Finn asked.</p><p>"You have my nephew in your custody." He said, not losing his calm, collected tone. Finn's eyes widened. It was David Karofsky himself, leader of the Karofsky cartel. "Just as I now have your partner's family in mine."</p><p>Finn's heart dropped. Santana and Quinn's kids were in danger.</p><p>"Bring my nephew to the Van Nuys Airport. You have one hour." He said and then hung up the phone. Finn's phone slipped out of his hands and shattered against the ground. Quinn noticed Finn's terrified expression and her heart rate increased. She had never seen Finn this scared before.</p><p>"What's wrong?" She demanded. Finn slowly turned to her and spoke in a deathly silent tone.</p><p>"Call Santana."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Just do what I tell you, and your family will be fine. Don't, and the children die first." The man murmurd, pointing a gun at Santana. Although Santana was freaking out, she forced herself to stay calm. The two of them slowly moved to sit at the dining table and moments later, Santana's phone rang. The man took it from her and he answered it.</p><p>"Hello." He growled.</p><p>"Put Santana on the phone." Quinn snapped.</p><p>"You don't make the demands." The man chuckled. "You're not in control of the situation. You understand?"</p><p>"Put her on." Quinn growled. "NOW!"</p><p>Somehow, the man nodded and passed Santana the phone. She put it up to her ear.</p><p>"Quinn?" Santana stammered.</p><p>"Are you all right?" Quinn asked. "Are the kids there?"</p><p>"We're okay." Santana replied. "They're upstairs. They don't know what's going on."</p><p>"Okay, you listen to me. Everything's gonna be okay, all right? I promise you."</p><p>"Ok. See you soon." Santana said. The man then snatched the phone back.</p><p>"You have 55 minutes." He growled and the line clicked off. Finn then swung open the car door and dragged Eddie out. He started rummaging through Eddie's pockets, despite the man's complaints and grumbling, and pulled out the keys to a Ferrari. Finn clicked the unlock button and the lights of a Ferrari across the lot lit up. Finn then walked over to Quinn, who was freaking out.</p><p>"Listen. You take him to the airport. I'll handle this." He said. Quinn shook her head furiously.</p><p>"I take care of my family." She snapped. She then grabbed a shotgun from the trunk of the car and cocked it, before walking over to the Ferrari. Finn sighed and nodded. He got in his car and started driving for the airport…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Santana sat at the dining table, the gun still pointing straight at her, and she waited. Suddenly, she heard Luke and Haley's voices coming down the stairs and thankfully, the man moved the gun so that it was pointed at her under the table.</p><p>"Hey. Hey, who's that?" Luke asked as they walked into the room.</p><p>"He's a friend of your mother's. He won't be staying long." Santana said, forcing a smile onto her face.</p><p>"Why don't you two sit with us?" The man suggested.</p><p>"NO!" Santana shouted. As the man's gun jabbed her leg warningly, Santana forced herself to stay calm. "No. You guys go. Go watch a movie in the den. We need to talk."</p><p>"Uh, okay." Luke replied and him and his sister walked down the stairs to the basement. As soon as they were gun, the man moved the gun so that it was back above the table.</p><p>"What do you think would happen if they saw you holding a gun to their aunt?" Santana asked, rhetorically. "They'd panic. And we both know the best thing for everyone is to stay calm."</p><p>"I can't believe I have to stay here and mom's not even here yet!" Haley called to Santana from the basement.</p><p>"Don't worry, honey. Your mother will be home soon!"</p><p>Sure enough, soon, Quinn silently pulled up to her house and grabbed her shotgun. She tiptoed around the house and saw Luke and Haley watching TV in the den, safe. Quinn then looked into the dining room and saw Santana sitting with the man. From Santana's vantage point, she could see Quinn but the man couldn't see her. She gestured to Santana, a gesture that Santana recognised instantly.</p><p>"You know, I could really use some coffee." Santana said. "Would that be okay?"</p><p>The man eventually nodded.</p><p>"Thank you." Santana replied, standing up and walking into the kitchen. The man followed her, his gun raised aloft. Santana slowly grabbed a mug and as soon as she turned on the coffee machine, for the second time in 24 hours, the lights and power in the house all went out.</p><p>"Hey. What happened?!" He spat, jamming the gun into her back.</p><p>"Calm down!" Santana snapped. "Our neighbor's holiday lights shorts our circuit. The breakers are just in the garage."</p><p>The man nodded.</p><p>"Try anything, and I'll make you watch me kill your kids." He growled. "You got it?"</p><p>Santana nodded. The two of them slowly walked into the garage together. Because of the pitch-black darkness, the man didn't notice the faint smirk that was on Santana's face. She walked over to the breaker and as soon as the lights were turned on, a shotgun jabbed into the man's back.</p><p>"Breathe, and I'll blow your ass all over this garage." Quinn spat. The man slowly put down his gun and Quinn conked him on the head, knocking him unconscious.</p><p>"You okay?" Quinn asked her sister.</p><p>"Yeah, I'm okay." Santana growled, kicking the unconscious man in the head for good measure.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn parked his car in the middle of a runway in Van Nuys airport and he dragged Eddie out the car. They were a couple of meters away from a stationary private jet.</p><p>"Don't look so glum, Finn." Eddie laughed. "Think of it this way. This time around, we managed to avoid any… unwanted accidents."</p><p>Finn growled and kicked the back of Eddie's leg, causing him to fall onto his knees. Suddenly, the doors to the jet swung open and four henchmen walked out.</p><p>"It's time for me to go, bro. It was fun though." Eddie smirked. "I'm sure we'll do it again sometime."</p><p>Just as Eddie was walking towards his henchman, Finn's phone chimed, indicating that he had a text. He pulled it out and read a text from Quinn…</p><p>
  <strong>They're safe</strong>
</p><p>As soon as he read the two words, Finn lunged at Eddie. The four henchmen quickly drew their guns and all pointed them at him but Finn didn't care. He grabbed his gun and put it to Eddie's temple.</p><p>"DID YOU KILL MY WIFE?!" Finn shouted, practically begging the man to answer. "TELL ME!"</p><p>Suddenly, someone else stepped off the plane and Finn's eyes widened. It was David Karofsky himself. Finn didn't flinch though. He kept holding the gun against Eddie's head.</p><p>"I will blow your brains out all over the ground." Finn growled. "One. Two!"</p><p>Suddenly, a gunshot rang out but Finn didn't feel anything. Instead, Eddie collapsed in a heap, a bullet buried right by his heart. And holding the gun was none other than David Karofsky himself. The cartel leader stepped off the plane and walked towards him.</p><p>"I want to thank you for bringing back my nephew." He said. "It's a shame he had such a temper. Made him weak, unpredictable. I could no longer ignore his failures."</p><p>Finn walked over to him but rather than pointing his gun at him, Finn put it away and stood over him.</p><p>"Did he kill my wife?" Finn murmured, tears running down his cheeks. David didn't answer. He started walking back towards his jet but Finn wasn't done yet.</p><p>"Rachel Berry-Hudson!" He called him. "El Paso, Texas. September 15th, 2019. Please tell me." Finn begged. After what seemed like an eternity, David stopped walking and responded.</p><p>"You weren't that important in El Paso, and you're not that important now."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Later that night, Finn was filling out some final paperwork when Kurt walked into the office.</p><p>"The FAA says David Karofsky's' jet is gone." Kurt said. "Somewhere in Mexican airspace but the Fabrays are safe. That's all we have for now. Probably a good time to… call it a night, head home."</p><p>"Have a good night, Cap." Finn said. Kurt sighed.</p><p>"You know, why don't you join us? If you don't have other plans." Kurt suggested. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Oh, I got… I got all this paperwork I got to do, so…"</p><p>"Well, you want a hand? I was actually a paperwork savant back in the day."</p><p>"Ah, Cap. Come on. It's Christmas. Go be with your family."</p><p>Kurt nodded.</p><p>"Finn, I know you wanted Karofsky pretty bad. Did you at least get the answers you were looking for?"</p><p>Finn sighed.</p><p>"Nah. He had me believing in things that don't exist. So…"</p><p>"It's the time of year for that." Kurt said before walking out of the office.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That night, Finn was putting away all of the case files from his wife's death. He suddenly heard voices outside and instantly recognised it as Quinn's voice.</p><p>"Let me go in first. There's no telling what he's been doing. May not be kid-safe." He heard Quinn say. Finn chuckled from inside and moments later, he heard a knock on his door. "Hello? You in there? A peaceful family's outside! You decent?"</p><p>"I'm drunk, if that's what you mean, yeah!" Finn responded. The door clicked open and Quinn, Santana, Haley, Alex and Luke all walked into his trailer, Quinn holding a turkey and Santana holding presents in her arms.</p><p>"Yeah, I assumed that already." Quinn laughed.</p><p>"Hey guys." Finn said. "You didn't have to do this!"</p><p>"This time of year isn't the same without family. And… like it or not, you're part of ours." Santana said, giving Finn a hug. "Now, does the stove work?"</p><p>"Uh… I didn't even know there was a stove under there." Finn laughed, clearing away empty bottles and cheese puff packets to reveal a stove.</p><p>"Thanks." Finn whispered quietly to Quinn. She simply nodded and hugged him.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>David Karofsky sat in his jet and spoke to someone on the phone.</p><p>"Keep a short leash on him. I don't want to have to come up here again." David growled into the phone. "And he asked about his wife. I told him the truth."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0026"><h2>26. Chapter 26</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>One afternoon, there was a prisoner transport from Los Angeles to Arlington, Texas. One Texas Ranger was driving his perp across the country. As they drove, the prisoner looked at his guard.</p><p>"The Texas Rangers. Is that where the baseball team gets its name from - from you guys?" The prisoner asked.</p><p>"Far as we're concerned." The Ranger replied.</p><p>"You a Rangers fan? Astros, maybe?"</p><p>"Well, I'm a fan of driving in silence all the way back to Texas, delivering you to stand trial and getting back to see my family."</p><p>"You got a family, huh? Good. You keep them in mind, you might live to see 'em again."</p><p>At that moment, a black SUV swerved in their path in front of them and another swerved behind them. The Texas Ranger groaned in a mixture of annoyance and fear. He was probably about to die. He was on the middle of an abandoned, mountainous road and there was nobody around for miles. The tires of his car were soon shot out and he came to a halt. The Texas Ranger was quickly surrounded by four men in masks, guns aloft.</p><p>"HEY! PUT YOUR WEAPON DOWN!" One of the thugs shouted. "Let's go!"</p><p>The Ranger slowly bent down and put his gun on the ground but as he stood up, he unsheathed a gun from his ankle holster. However, he couldn't get a shot off as one of the thugs fired two bullets into his chest before he could do anything. After they confirmed that the Ranger was dead, they opened his car and uncuffed the prisoner.</p><p>"Hey guys." He said, before walking away with them, leaving the Ranger dead on the ground…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn lay in the park and threw a ball for his dog. The animal was not one he planned on having: he was a stray that happened to wander into Finn's trailer and refused to leave so Finn didn't have much of a choice. As the dog ran to fetch the ball, two cops cycled over to him, wearing extremely short biker shorts.</p><p>"Any reason your dog's off his leash?" One of the cops asked. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Nah, I tend to let him, you know, roam free, do his own thing."</p><p>"Well, in this park it's illegal not to have your animal leashed or without a collar." One of the cops said. Finn sighed and took out his LAPD Detective's badge and showed it to the two officers.</p><p>"Robbery/Homicide." Finn said. "Sorry, boys, I'm just not that familiar with canine crimes."</p><p>"You're a cop? Seriously?" One of the cops snapped, gesturing to Finn's messy, dishevelled appearance. Finn chuckled.</p><p>"Funny, I was gonna ask you guys the same thing. You know, my father always said that a man should never wear shorts to work but if he saw these shorts… you know what it is? It's the cut of them. That's what makes 'em sexy."</p><p>"Three tickets: Dog off the leash, without a collar, no license." One of the officers snapped, handing Finn a slip of paper. Finn rolled his eyes and took the slip.</p><p>"So much for the fraternal brotherhood of police." Finn remarked. "So let me ask you guys a question. If the bad guys have a car, what do you guys do? Call 911?"</p><p>Finn's dog trotted back to him moments later and Finn gave the piece of paper to his dog, who ate it right in front of the policemen.</p><p>"Have a wonderful day." Finn smiled. "And be careful out there on those bicycles, okay?"</p><p>Accepting defeat, the officers sighed and walked away.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"It makes me wonder just why <em>you </em>weren't charged with an actual crime. Because, Dr. Bansal, you have testimony two days ago that made reference to a reckless endangerment charge."</p><p>In the kitchen, Santana practised her speech on Alex as she fed her her breakfast of strained bananas.</p><p>"Objection!" Quinn exclaimed, walking into the room. "Dr. Bansal is clearly too cute to be guilty of anything." She said, kissing her baby and smiling at Santana. "You're out of order, Counselor. This whole court is out of order!"</p><p>"Overruled." Santana laughed. Quinn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Oh, so now you're attorney and judge?"</p><p>"Dare to dream." Santana replied, handing her a bowl of oatmeal.</p><p>"So, what did this Dr. Bansal do?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Nothing." Santana replied. "But he's testifying against my client, so I'm planning to invalidate his testimony by proving he lied under oath."</p><p>"And that is why you should never lie to your auntie San." Quinn told her 6 month old daughter. "So, is your client guilty?"</p><p>"It's not as simple as that." Santana said.</p><p>"Oh, sure it is." Quinn stated.</p><p>"What I get, Quinn, is that you're an LAPD cop who bleeds LAPD blue, and I love you for that. But the subtlety of the law is not your biggest passion."</p><p>"All I'm saying is, at the end of the day, either you did it or you didn't do it. It's that simple."</p><p>Shortly after, Quinn received a text saying 9-9-9 (Officer down) so she had to rush out of the house very quickly.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"You can't be seriously taking their side of this?" Finn asked, disbelieving. He had just told Quinn the story about the two cops' tickets as they walked towards the crime scene. They had driven a good hour to get to their crime scene as it was close to the L.A border. "Have you seen the shorts these guys wear?"</p><p>"Hey, they're cops, just like us." Quinn replied.</p><p>"Like you, maybe." Finn grumbled.</p><p>"You shouldn't have fed your ticket to the dog." Quinn stated.</p><p>"What, you would have arrested me, is that it?" Finn snapped.</p><p>"You were guilty, weren't you?" Quinn asked. "At the very least, Finn, you should have showed them a little more respect."</p><p>They finally made it to the crime scene where there was a body covered by a sheet.</p><p>"What's his name?" Quinn asked Tina.</p><p>"Mark Ervin." Tina replied. "He was transporting a sheriff department prisoner to Texas for a murder trial. Transport got hit, Ervin got killed."</p><p>"I'm guessing the prisoner didn't stick around." Quinn remarked.</p><p>"Wade Davies." Tina responded. "U.S Marshals are putting together a search team now."</p><p>"Jailbreak on wheels." Quinn murmured to herself. "Just one ranger per transport?" She asked.</p><p>"Ranger Motto." Finn replied. "One riot, one ranger."</p><p>"Any shell casings?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Nothing. Totally clean." Tina responded.</p><p>"Very professional." Quinn commented. "Looks like somebody knew what they were doing."</p><p>Finn, who was sitting in the wrecked car, opened the Ranger's bag and pulled out a flask. He pocketed it.</p><p>"Yeah… they sure did." He replied before taking a swig of alcohol. Quinn glared at him.</p><p>"Geez, could you wait until happy hour before you start drinking potential evidence?" She snapped. Finn smirked at her.</p><p>"Why don't you arrest me?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"He was hit by three .223-caliber copper bullets." Marley said to the two detectives in the morgue later that day. "Two from distance, one at close range."</p><p>"He put up a fight." Finn murmured. "Anything else?"</p><p>"Impressions from the bullets show they were all from the same Mini-14 assault rifle. Has a pretty distinctive groove in the barrel." Marley said.</p><p>"We find the gun, we find the killer." Quinn concluded. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door and a man in a suit and cowboy hat.</p><p>"Sorry to interrupt you fellas." A familiar Texan drawl greeted them. "I'm Samuel Petry, Texas Rangers. And I came here to bring Mark back home."</p><p>Finn nodded and walked over to him.</p><p>"Finn Hudson, Homicide." He introduced himself. "And this is Quinn Fabray, my partner. I'm sorry for your loss."</p><p>"Thank you. Mark was a good man. Wish I could say dying with your boots on is the way to go."</p><p>"But it's not. We all know that." Finn stated.</p><p>"Well, a full autopsy of him shouldn't be more than a day or two." Marley said. The two detectives and the Ranger nodded and walked out of the lab. Once they were back in the bullpen, Samuel turned to them.</p><p>"So, what do you fellers know so far?" He asked.</p><p>"One shooter, two cars, ambush style, that's it. What about the Texas side. What do y'all know?" Finn asked.</p><p>"The prisoner, Wade Davies, has money. Big construction guy from Laredo. Got indicted for murder two years ago and fled Texas for L.A. But what was your excuse?" The man asked Finn. "I'd say from the funny way you talk, it's… uh… South Texas?"</p><p>"El Paso." Finn replied.</p><p>"It's good to know another Texan's on the case." The man said and the two men nodded at each other, not saying anything but the nod was like a thousand words packed into one. It was a moment of mutual respect.</p><p>"Don't worry, Mr. Petry. One of Inglewood's finest is one the case." Quinn said, proudly.</p><p>"Oh, what a comfort." He replied, sarcastically. Quinn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"In light of the circumstances, I won't take offense to that." She laughed. Samuel didn't though.</p><p>"Well, maybe you should." He snarled before pushing past Quinn and walking out of the room. After he was gone, Quinn turned to Finn.</p><p>"Seriously, are all of you this pleasant?" She remarked. Finn chuckled and the two of them walked towards Kurt's office to brief him.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Inside job meaning what?" Kurt asked.</p><p>"Look, they knew exactly which truck to hit. You got an isolated road out in the middle of nowhere. Whoever did this, they knew the transport route."</p><p>"L.A Sheriff's Department?" Kurt asked.</p><p>"Or the Texas Rangers." Quinn remarked. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"It could have also come from that side, yeah." He admitted.</p><p>"Well, I'm glad to hear that you're inclined to question the integrity of any law enforcement body, regardless of geography." She said. Finn rolled his eyes.</p><p>"I said that it <em>could </em>have. Look, come on, Q. We're a long way from Texas, all right? This would be a home game for the L.A sheriff's department."</p><p>"The Sheriff's angle does make some sense." Kurt stated. "Davies was in county lockup for three days, enough time to broker a jailbreak from the inside."</p><p>"Come on, Cap. LAPD accusing the L.A Sheriff's Department of a cop killing without any evidence?" Quinn remarked.</p><p>"None yet. So go find some." Kurt replied. "Find out who in the sheriff's department had access to the route. And even before I say this, I can hear my future self laughing at my current self, be delicate about it."</p><p>Finn smirked.</p><p>"Delicate. Got it." Finn grinned. "Like plucking an eyelash from a pit bull."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Puck and Tina walked into the L.A County Jail and Tina could tell Puck looked extremely uneasy.</p><p>"You okay?" She asked.</p><p>"Yeah, fine." He growled in reply. "This place hasn't changed a bit."</p><p>The two of them walked over to the front desk of the jail and the lady working there smirked when she saw Puck.</p><p>"Well, well, well, Noah Puckerman? You just won me 50 bucks. I knew I'd see you again. What did he do this time?" The lady asked Tina.</p><p>"Only the dumbest thing ever." Tina replied.</p><p>"I'm on the edge of my seat." She remarked.</p><p>"He became a cop." She said. Puck showed her his LAPD badge. Her eyes widened.</p><p>"Good Lord, I know the LAPD has low standards, but this is ridiculous."</p><p>"Are you finished?" Tina snapped. "Because we're investigating the death of a police officer, so whenever you're ready to answer some questions, maybe we can proceed."</p><p>"I'm sorry." She murmured. "How can I help?"</p><p>"We need to know who signed a prisoner named Wade Davies to Texas Rangers two days ago." Puck demanded.</p><p>"You want to talk with Leila Jones, but she's not here."</p><p>"You know where we can find her?"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0027"><h2>27. Chapter 27</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Finn and Quinn strutted into the bowling alley where they were told they could find Leila Jones that afternoon. Quinn smiled as they walked into the alley and Finn noticed.</p><p>"Let me guess… you're a bowler." He remarked. She smirked.</p><p>"That's one way to put it." She replied. "Perfect-game roller. I rolled a 300. Notice the plaque with my name and picture on it." She said, pointing to the corner of the room where a bunch of pictures were tacked onto the wall. Finn walked over and snickered when he saw Quinn's photo: someone had doodled devil horns and a hitler mustache over her face.</p><p>"That's attractive." He commented. Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Why would they…?" Quinn stammered.</p><p>"Nah, you look good with a mustache, Q." He said. He then turned around and saw a lady at the lane at the back of the room. He pointed at her.</p><p>"I think we found our Leila." Finn said. Quinn nodded.</p><p>"Uh-huh." She agreed and the two of them walked over to her.</p><p>"Leila Jones, Detective Fabray and Hudson. LAPD." Quinn said. "We're investigating the prison-transport ambush yesterday."</p><p>"Yeah, and we understand that you had access to the transport route. Who else had eyes on that?" Finn asked. Leila glanced around nervously.</p><p>"I'm not exactly sure." She replied. "Look, I have to go, sorry."</p><p>"Oh, is this not a good place for you to talk?" Finn remarked. Leila kept looking behind her uneasily.</p><p>"There really isn't a good place." She murmured.</p><p>"Ma'am, we're investigating the murder of a police officer. You know that, right?" Quinn snapped.</p><p>"Look, what happened was awful, but do you know what happens when you talk to the LAPD about your own? You get transferred to night court or… worse."</p><p>"Worse than night court?" Finn asked. Leila looked down and nodded.</p><p>"Rumor is, someone in the department's dog got shot. Golden retriever. All because they talked when they shouldn't have."</p><p>"This rumor have a name?" Finn murmured. "'Cause I would love to know who shot that dog."</p><p>Leila didn't answer. She just looked down and shook her head. Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Look, we're just trying to help here, Leila. We can't do that without a name."</p><p>"Jeffrey Veld." She eventually said. "Same guy who approved the Ranger's transport route. Look, Sheriff's is a good group, but there's always one bad apple."</p><p>Suddenly, a member of the L.A Sheriff's walked up to them.</p><p>"Everything all right here?" He asked.</p><p>"Oh, it's wonderful. We just can't get enough of that rented-shoe smell." Finn responded, sarcastically.</p><p>"Smells like foot and ass." Quinn agreed.</p><p>"Quinn Fabray, in the flesh. I recognise you from your picture on the wall." The man said.</p><p>"Did you now?" Quinn smiled.</p><p>"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Dude, you gotta tell me. How'd you get them to put your picture up?"</p><p>"I bowled a 300. That's how." Quinn replied. The man rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Right, yeah. The perfect game during which the electronic score keeper just so happened to go out in the middle. What are the odds?"</p><p>"Are you suggesting that I didn't bowl a perfect game?" Quinn spat.</p><p>"Just admit it, Fabray. Your score is bogus."</p><p>Quinn then turned to Finn, ignoring the man.</p><p>"And now I think he's questioning my integrity." Quinn remarked.</p><p>"That's exactly what he's doing." Finn laughed. "And here's the thing with that, you can question my integrity all day long, but this woman is just full of integrity."</p><p>"Mm, I'm questioning her integrity and her skill." The man remarked.</p><p>"Buddy, could I show you a little bit of skill?" Quinn growled, clenching her fist. Finn turned to her and stood in front of her.</p><p>"Hold on, hold on, hold on. So, just so that I'm clear, are we about to get into a fight in this bowling alley?"</p><p>"I think so." Quinn growled. Finn grinned wildly.</p><p>"Cool, just checking. I mean, it's AWESOME if we are." He replied. Suddenly, a voice came from behind them.</p><p>"Detective Quinn Fabray?" A man asked. They turned around to face him and they immediately noticed a sheriff's badge pinned to his hip. "Hey, Luke Barton. It's nice to meet you."</p><p>He shook their hands.</p><p>"And thank you, both of you, for coming down to our annual fund-raiser." He continued. "Always nice to feel supported by our friends in the LAPD. That is why you're here, isn't it?"</p><p>"We're investigating the murder of a Texas Ranger." Finn growled. "You boys heard about that, right?"</p><p>"Yeah, it's horrible what happened." Luke replied. "Well… if you guys need anything, just let me know. You have the sheriff department's full support on this."</p><p>"Mm, appreciate that." Quinn murmured, sarcastically. Finn and Quinn turned around and started to walk away when the man who was talking to them earlier called after them.</p><p>"Remember, Fabray. We're all cops here. We're rooting for you on this case, so try not to take the outcome like you did your perfect game."</p><p>Quinn groaned in annoyance and she turned and walked back to the man and squared up to him.</p><p>"All right, Imma give you three seconds to take that back and apologise." She growled.</p><p>"Start counting." The man smirked.</p><p>"One…" She spat. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"OK, here's the thing." Finn said quietly to her. "If we're gonna get into a fight with police officers in a bowling alley… then there's one thing you gotta know." Finn said as 8 officers surrounded them. "Hit first."</p><p>With that, Finn spun around and socked the man right in the face. All hell then broke out…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That evening, Kurt met for dinner with an old friend of his, David Reed, now a member of the L.A Sheriff's department.</p><p>"Well, I'm glad to hear that you are doing well over there, Kurt." He said. "Today captain, tomorrow who knows, right?"</p><p>"So far so good, and likewise. I'm glad things are good for you at Sheriff's."</p><p>"Mm, yes, they are. 12 years running now. You know, what happened out there in the desert with that ranger… real tragedy."</p><p>"It was." Kurt nodded.</p><p>"Some of your detectives have been sniffing around my department. I heard they had a run-in with some of my boys… off duty, no less." David said.</p><p>"Just doing our jobs… looking into every avenue of investigation." Kurt replied. David scowled at him.</p><p>"I'm gonna be real clear here, Kurt. If there is a problem in my house, I will handle it myself." He growled quietly. "Of course I would extend the same courtesy to you if the roles were reversed, you know that right? So please, for both our sakes, tightened the leash on your end, all right?"</p><p>"I will… I will talk to them, sure but I have a dead Texas Ranger on my board and I can't tell them where not to look."</p><p>David laughed.</p><p>"Yeah, I understand. You know, cops… good cops… they make mistakes and those mistakes don't ever really go away. They have consequences… and I'd really hate for this investigation to dredge up anything that you wouldn't want to resurface. Best to let the past stay… locked up. Don't you think?"</p><p>Kurt's heart dropped and he gulped in fear. He knew exactly what David was referring to. It was a grave mistake Kurt had made many years ago and one that haunted him every night anyone found out about what he did, his life would be ruined. Kurt's mouth ran dry and he couldn't form any words. David stood up.</p><p>"Get your detectives under control." He warned before walking away.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"For what it's worth, the brawl was my fault and Finn was just backing me up." Quinn said. It was the next morning and the two detectives were all explaining their actions from the day before. Somehow, the two of them had managed to fight off the 8 L.A Sheriffs. Well, not the two of them: more accurately, Finn managed to fight off the 8 L.A Sheriffs. Quinn had no idea how amazing Finn was in a fight - his SEAL days had trained him into a ruthless machine.</p><p>"No, no." Finn said. "No, I threw the first punch. I mean, I've got a reputation to uphold."</p><p>"They were questioning my integrity as a police offer." Quinn cried.</p><p>"And as a bowler!" Finn exclaimed. "Those sheriffs are real dicks! I mean, and to be fair, possibly murderers, am I right?"</p><p>"I'm starting to warm up to that theory." Quinn nodded. Kurt sighed.</p><p>"Did you guys find anything specific that links the sheriff department to the ranger's murder?" He asked.</p><p>"Yeah, the, uh… the transfer clerk at the prison just gave us a name. Deputy Jeffrey Veld." Finn replied. "Apparently, he approved the transfer route the night before the murder."</p><p>"Yeah, and she said that Veld recently shot a co-worker's dog." Quinn added.</p><p>"A dog? Why?" Kurt asked, confused.</p><p>"Well, the way she put it, for talking when they shouldn't have." Quinn replied.</p><p>"Talking about what?"</p><p>"We don't know." Finn responded. "We were about to find out when a certain Deputy Barton came up and spooked her and that's when the other deputy got in Q's face. Before you know it, it was on. On like donkey kong." Finn grinned. Kurt rolled his eyes.</p><p>"If by on, you mean moronic." Kurt stated. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"And if by moronic, you mean a hell of a lot of fun, then yeah."</p><p>Quinn giggled but Kurt looked at them disapprovingly.</p><p>"So, that's all we have on them right now is this… this dog thing?"</p><p>"Yeah. We had the dog exhumed." Finn murmured. "And Marley's doing an autopsy now."</p><p>Kurt slowly nodded. His mind was racing at a million miles an hour. On one hand, he wanted the case solved as soon as possible but on the other, he knew that if he did, a terrible secret about him would be dug up.</p><p>"Look guys… I want you to keep pressing, but listen to me. We have to be…"</p><p>"Delicate." Quinn cut in. "Yeah, we heard."</p><p>"Delicate and persistent." He said. "Nobody gets a free pass on this."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn and Finn left the office moments later. They were quickly joined by Tina and Puck.</p><p>"Well? Did he rip you a new one?" Tina asked Quinn. Quinn laughed.</p><p>"Kurt? Surprisingly, no. Pays to be a first-time offender. So, do we have anything on Veld yet?"</p><p>"Sheriff's Deputy Veld… Internal Affairs investigated him twice for excessive force." Puck replied.</p><p>"Not surprising, considering he put a dog in the grave."</p><p>"Yeah, about that." Marley murmured, glumly walking over to them.</p><p>"You okay?" Quinn asked, concerned for her friend. "You don't look so good."</p><p>"Maybe that's because I just cut open the remains of a golden retriever named Thunder."</p><p>"Don't you do it to humans all day long?" Tina remarked.</p><p>"Yeah, but homans are my comfort zone. Dogs… not so much." She replied. "Anyway, the bullet that felled Thunder was the same caliber that killed the ranger, fired by the same Mini-14 assault rifle. Standard issue at Sheriff's until… two years ago."</p><p>"Time to get Thunder some justice." Quinn said, determined.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Kurt anxiously waited in the park, two cups of coffee in his hands. He had texted someone to meet him and he just hoped that they showed. He desperately needed them. Sure enough, a couple of moments later, he felt a tap on his shoulder and he turned to see Santana smiling at him.</p><p>"Santana!" He exclaimed, handing her a coffee.</p><p>"Thank you." She said.</p><p>"Thank <em>you.</em>" He replied. "Thanks for meeting me on such short notice."</p><p>"Of course." She smiled at him as she sat down. "You didn't sound so good over the phone. And here we are in the middle of a work day, eight blocks from your office. If I didn't know better, I'd say you think you need a lawyer."</p><p>Kurt sighed and nodded.</p><p>"I think I do… and one I can trust."</p><p>"Well, you got her… but I have to ask, does this have anything to do with Quinn? Because, if it does, you know I can't represent you."</p><p>"It doesn't… not directly, at least. But it does concern something that I did back when Quinn and I were partners. Something that she does not know about."</p><p>"Okay." Santana said, taking a deep breath. "I'm listening."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0028"><h2>28. Chapter 28</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Finn and Quinn pulled up to Veld's house a couple of minutes later and they got out of the car. However, rather than knocking on the door, Finn held her back. Instead, he silently tiptoed around to the side of the house and peered in through a window. He immediately spotted a pair of broken handcuffs and an orange prison jumpsuit lying on the floor and he gritted his teeth. He then walked back to Quinn.</p><p>"All right." He said. "Veld either has a prison guard fetish, which is a step up from being a dog killer, or he's got Davies holed up in there. How do you want to do this?"</p><p>"You go around back. I got the front." Quinn ordered. Finn nodded.</p><p>"Meet you in the middle." He said and the two of them split up. Finn climbed the 10 ft fence with ease and he approached the back door. He tried to kick it open but it wouldn't budge. He kicked it again and again and when it finally caved in, Finn went flying through and he landed on a warm body. Quinn and Finn groaned in pain as they lay on the ground.</p><p>"Did you seriously do that?" Quinn groaned. Finn smirked at her.</p><p>"Did you really bowl a perfect game?" He responded. Quinn shot him a death glare. Finn raised his hands in surrender. "I'm saying, in both scenarios, yes."</p><p>Suddenly, Davies ran past them and bolted out the door.</p><p>"Oh! Bad guy!" Finn exclaimed as the two detectives scrambled to their feet and followed the man. Davies ran down the fire escape and Finn followed him while Quinn left to go cut him off. He then jumped the house fence and sprinted out onto the street, causing several cars to swerve to avoid him. Suddenly, a truck connected to a trailer slowly drove into their path and blocked Finn from reaching Davies. As he was waiting for the truck to move, he heard three gunshots. Fearing for Quinn's safety, Finn climbed on top of the truck and leapt onto the other side of the street. But it wasn't Quinn that shot or was shot. Standing over Davies' motionless body was the Sheriff they had met the day before: Luke Barton.</p><p>"Drop the weapon!" Finn shouted, sprinting towards him. Luke lifted his gun and pointed it at Finn.</p><p>"I'd advise you to do the same, Detective." He said.</p><p>"What are you doing here?" Finn asked.</p><p>"Pursuing a suspect in the ranger murder." Luke replied.</p><p>"You just executed Davies." Finn growled.</p><p>"Nope, I shot a man in self-defense." Luke said, shaking his head. "He pulled a gun on me."</p><p>"The hell he did." Finn spat.</p><p>"Look again, Detective." Luke said. "It was him or me, and I've got to tell you, in those situations, it never ends up being me."</p><p>"Always a first." Finn replied. Suddenly, Quinn ran over to them, her gun raised.</p><p>"All right, why don't we all just lower our weapons so no one else has to get shot?" Quinn suggested, calmly.</p><p>"Detective Fabray, the bowler, and now the voice of reason." Luke murmured.</p><p>"Hey, Q, sorry to further lower your opinion of the Sheriff's department, but I'm pretty sure that Deputy Barton here's who killed our ranger, sprung Davies and now he just shot him in this alleyway before we had a chance to chat with him."</p><p>"You know what they say, there's always one bad apple." She remarked.</p><p>"Well, two. We can't forget about Veld. I mean, it was his house after all." Finn pointed out.</p><p>In the talking, neither detective noticed someone sneaking up behind them. Finn was the first to hear the shuffle of footsteps behind him. He spun around, expecting a bullet to pierce through the air. The bullet came, but it didn't hit Quinn or Finn. Instead, it buried into Veld's skull and Luke was the one who pulled the trigger.</p><p>"All right, now we're back down to one." Finn commented.</p><p>"You two mind lowering your weapons?" Luke snapped. "I just saved your life, Detective."</p><p>Finn nodded and slowly put his gun away. Quinn did the same.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"So, after exactly a week of sobriety, how's it going?" Dr. Pillsbury asked. Going sober was something Finn decided the day they found the dead Texas Ranger and he took a drink at the crime scene. He finally realised that he was at a place in his life where he didn't need booze to dull the pain. Sure he missed Rachel - he missed her more and more each day, but he finally came to terms with the fact that she was gone and there was genuinely nothing he could do to change that. And in addition, he was actually starting to have feelings for someone else. Someone who was not only his professional partner but his best friend. Someone whose family took him in when nobody else would.</p><p>"How did you know?" Finn asked, astonished.</p><p>"Your eyes. They're clear. Sobriety suits you." She remarked. "So how's it going?"</p><p>"Um… amazing. Great. Awesome." Finn replied. Dr. Pillsbury raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Well, no one said it was gonna be easy."</p><p>"I just said it was great, awesome and amazing so…"</p><p>"Right." She said, giving him her typical therapist smile.</p><p>"Right." He repeated.</p><p>"Well, is there anything that's not going great?"</p><p>"Uh, no. I mean… Oh, um… there was a kind of weird moment between Quinn and I the other day."</p><p>Dr. Pillsbury smiled and her eyes widened.</p><p>"Oh? What happened?"</p><p>"Well, it all happened a week or so ago…"</p><p>
  <strong>A week ago…</strong>
</p><p>"<em>Hold the lift!" Finn called, running towards the elevator and throwing himself into the lift. Quinn giggled as she stood in the lift and panted for breath.</em></p><p>"<em>I thought SEALs are meant to have great stamina." Quinn remarked. "You know, it's not very comforting to know that the most elite men in the military can't run to a lift without getting out of breath."</em></p><p>
  <em>"Okay, first of all, RETIRED SEAL." Finn argued. "And second, my beer belly doesn't really help."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"So why don't you go sober?" Quinn suggested, straight-up. Finn raised an eyebrow.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Seriously? Me? Sober? That's like Ironman without his suit." Finn laughed.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No, that would be Ironman with a drinking problem." She responded.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I think that would just be Ironman." Finn pointed out. Quinn giggled. The two of them stood silently in the lift until they made it to the outdoor car park. They walked together to their respective cars, which were parked away from one another. Finn watched as Quinn walked away towards her car and crossed the road. Suddenly, he noticed a car speeding towards her and his heart dropped. Quinn had earbuds in so she couldn't hear the car coming and Finn spotted that the car's driver was texting so he wouldn't stop.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"QUINN!" Finn shouted as he ran towards her. She didn't hear him though. She had no idea she was in any danger until Finn hurled himself onto the road and dived at Quinn. He knocked her out of the way and the two of them went tumbling towards the ground. A second later, the car zoomed past, not stopping at all and it could have easily hit Quinn.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>That was the least of their problems right then. When they fell, Quinn ended up landing on top of Finn in a very compromising position. As she saw the car, she put two and two together and she went from confusion to disbelief. She scrambled to her feet and helped him up. Finn groaned in pain as he had taken the brunt of the fall as he had landed on the asphalt while Quinn had landed on him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Finn, you… you saved my life." She murmured. Finn shrugged.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Of course." He replied. His mind was still reeling from everything that happened but the part that affected him was probably not the same part that affect Quinn.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Quinn threw her arms around him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Thank you!" She cried, tears leaking out of her eyes. Although she was a cop - a relatively dangerous profession, she rarely ever felt as close to death as she did there.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Hey, it's okay. You're good."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"How can I thank you?" She asked. "You've gotta let me buy you a drink." She said. Finn shook his head.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No thanks." He replied. Quinn raised an eyebrow.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Seriously? I'm offering to buy you drinks and you're saying no?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Finn nodded and shrugged.</em>
</p><p>"<em>You convinced me. I'm going sober…"</em></p><p>"I don't get it. What was the weird part?" Dr. Pillsbury asked once he was done telling the story. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Well, when she was on top of me, I felt a weird feeling. A tingle."</p><p>"Woah, dude, chill!" Dr. Pillsbury laughed, holding her hands up. "TMI!"</p><p>Finn rolled his eyes.</p><p>"No, not that kind of feeling. I mean like… sparks. Something I haven't felt since… well, since Rachel."</p><p>Dr. Pillsbury smiled.</p><p>"Finn, that's great news! You're finally starting to move on."</p><p>Finn looked down in shame.</p><p>"I can't forget her." Finn murmured, quietly. Dr. Pillsbury immediately knew who he was talking about. "She was such a huge part of my life. I can't forget her."</p><p>"And no one's asking you to." Dr. Pillsbury replied, gently. "But she'd want you to be happy. Move on. She was your first love and she'll always be an important part of your life. But you've hopefully got at least 50 more years of your life left. You shouldn't have to spend them alone."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Later that night, Finn walked past Kurt's office and raised an eyebrow: Kurt was sitting in the corner of the room, a glass in his hands.</p><p>"Are you drinking scotch?" Finn laughed. Kurt nodded.</p><p>"Yes, I am." He replied. "You want a glass?"</p><p>Finn sighed and shook his head.</p><p>"Can't. 8 days sober." He replied. Kurt's eyes widened.</p><p>"Really? That's great, Finn!"</p><p>"Thanks. Wait, was that a test? Did I pass a test for the first time?"</p><p>Kurt shook his head.</p><p>"Not for you but maybe for me." Kurt remarked. Finn nodded.</p><p>"You know, normally I would be so confused right now." Finn admitted. "But do you know what fixes that? Sobriety."</p><p>"The past always catches up with us, doesn't it?" Kurt murmured.</p><p>"Past, present and future is a disaster, no matter how you slice it." Finn replied. Kurt took a deep breath and started talking quietly.</p><p>"My second year on the job… there was this guy, Azimio Adams. He raped and killed a ten year old girl. We had DNA evidence, but then, right before trial, the DNA sample got compromised in the lab so it was inadmissible. He was gonna walk. I knew this guy at the Sheriff's department, David Reed - run things now over there now. Anyway, David got me access to Azimio's jail cell when he was in the yard. Didn't take long to find what I was looking for."</p><p>"What was that?" Finn asked although he had a bad feeling that he knew how the story was going to end.</p><p>"A strand of Azimio's hair that found its way to the victim's sweater. Second time around, the DNA sample was not compromised and Azimio went away for life. I framed a man for murder, Finn."</p><p>Finn sat silently as he took in the bombshell that Kurt had dropped on him. Of course, what Kurt did was deathly wrong but Finn was going to be on Kurt's side no matter what.</p><p>"Come on. The guy was guilty, right? Justice served." Finn stated. "So, what? Has this Reed cat been putting the screws to you?"</p><p>"Yeah." Kurt sighed. "Says he'll ruin me if I don't back you guys off."</p><p>"Quinn know about this?"</p><p>Kurt shook his head.</p><p>"She was my partner at the time. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Well… you gotta talk to her. Hey, you're a good cop. Don't you ever forget that."</p><p>Kurt smiled faintly. This sober version of Finn was so different, in a good way!</p><p>"Go get him, Finn. Do it the right way."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0029"><h2>29. Chapter 29</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Quinn walked out from her hearing about Davies' and Veld's shootings and Luke Barton immediately walked up to her.</p><p>"Hey, how'd it go in there? Did you tell them all how heroic I am, saving you and your partner's life?"</p><p>"Yeah, that's exactly what I told them." She replied, sarcastically. "It didn't cross my mind to tell them that I think Davies pdi you to break him out, and then you killed him when you thought we were too close."</p><p>"Do I look worried?" Luke smirked.</p><p>"You look guilty." Quinn spat.</p><p>"Well, in that case, I might need to get myself a good lawyer, huh? Hey, do you think you can get me a sit-down with your sexy sister? I heard she's very expensive by the hour but worth it."</p><p>Quinn really wanted to punch him in the face at this point but she forced herself to stay calm.</p><p>"You know, I can't help but think about how a former sheriff's deputy is gonna fare in prison." She giggled. "What kind of bonds you're gonna have with your fellow inmates. You'll let me know."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Technically, what he said wasn't a threat." Santana remarked. That night, the two of them were sitting and drinking wine and Quinn was telling her friend about what happened earlier.</p><p>"Wait, are you his attorney?" Quinn asked. "I don't care how you parse it, he invoked your name and that's not okay."</p><p>"I'm just saying…"</p><p>"No, no, no, stop it. You're fearless, I get it. I love it. Quite frankly, it's a little hot. But these guys aren't just corrupt cops. They're killers."</p><p>"And you will catch them. I'm not worried, Q." Santana said, gently. "So how's everything else, other than it?"</p><p>"It's good." Quinn replied. "Good. Good. It's good. Pretty good. Good."</p><p>"One more and I'll believe you." Santana laughed. "So what's up?"</p><p>Quinn sighed.</p><p>"I mean, I'm not lying. Everything is good. It's just… recently, I've kinda been starting to to have feelings for someone… romantically."</p><p>Santana clapped her hands together excitedly. Quinn hadn't shown interest in a guy since her divorce a year ago.</p><p>"Ooh, who?" Santana asked.</p><p>"Ff-f-f-f-f-n." Quinn inaudibly murmured.</p><p>"Who?"</p><p>"Finn." Quinn murmured a bit louder. Santana's eyes widened.</p><p>"Wow. That's huge!" Santana exclaimed. "Look, just… be careful. He's not in a great place emotionally and the last thing we want is for him to get scared off and move."</p><p>"That's just it. He's in a much better place now than I've ever seen him." Quinn replied. "He's sober, he's happier and he's just an all-round much better guy to be around and in case you haven't noticed, he's pretty hot too."</p><p>Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Quinn and Santana looked at each other, confused. It was pretty late at night for anyone to be stopping by. The two of them walked to the door together and opened it to see Kurt standing there.</p><p>"Hi, Quinn." He said. He looked extremely nervous. Quinn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Hmm. I would have thought it'd be Finn. He usually intrudes on my evening."</p><p>"We need to talk." Kurt murmured.</p><p>"Let's go to my office." Santana nodded, assuming that he was talking to her. Kurt shook his head.</p><p>"No, Quinn and I need to talk."</p><p>Santana raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"As your lawyer, I would strongly advise you against that." Santana murmured.</p><p>"As your lawyer?" Quinn stated, extremely confused. "You hired my sister?"</p><p>"Remember Azimio Adams…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"You framed a guy for murder?!" Quinn shouted.</p><p>"She was ten years old, Quinn!" Kurt responded. "He had to go away."</p><p>"I don't disagree. But by framing him? I would have turned your ass in!"</p><p>"I know! And then Azimio would have walked."</p><p>"NO! I would have found another way to get him, legally!" She spat. "How many others were there? HOW MANY TIMES DID YOU BREAK THE LAW TO ENFORCE IT?!"</p><p>"He was the only one." Kurt snapped.</p><p>"Oh, he was the only one? How noble." Quinn spat. "And you're only telling me this now, why? Because you just got blackmailed?"</p><p>"I'm gonna resign, Quinn." Kurt stated. Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Damn, that actually <em>is </em>noble." She murmured, taken aback. "But if you think this is the time when I'm gonna say, 'hey, don't do it, man, it's not worth it,' you're wrong."</p><p>"I'm not asking for that." Kurt replied. "And I'm not asking you to forgive me."</p><p>"And I appreciate that because I can't."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Luke Barton was taking the trash when he noticed a beat-down pickup truck parked outside his house. Luke smirked.</p><p>"Detective Riggs. Any reason you're waiting outside my house?" He asked, walking over to Finn's window.</p><p>"Well, there was a string of burglaries in the area, and I just wanted to make sure that, you know, you and your family were safe."</p><p>"Aren't you the perfect gentlemen?"</p><p>"Well, just returning the favor, really. You know, after you showed an interest in the Fabrays. His sister in particular, I understand."</p><p>"Boy, you LAPD guys are so sensitive." He chuckled. "Not so surprising coming from Fabray, but from what I understand, you've got a thicker skin. You're not such a… team player over there. Isn't that right?"</p><p>"Well, thing is… the Fabrays are my team."</p><p>"Like your foster family?" Barton smirked. "'Cause you don't have one of your own?"</p><p>"Well now you're just trying to charm me." Finn chuckled.</p><p>"Look at you, camped outside of my house, doing this, trying to scare me a little. You know, if I think about it, I'd say that you and I, we're not that different."</p><p>"Well, you know, there is that one thing that's different. I ain't ever killed a cop. Well, not yet anyway." Finn said, not losing his cheery tone and looking Barton right in the eye as he threatened him. He then drove away into the night.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next morning, after Quinn had time to mull over what had happened the day before, she stormed downstairs to see Santana working on her laptop.</p><p>"You really thought it was a good idea to represent him? My former partner, current captain."</p><p>"Good morning, Q." Santana chuckled. "And I did. He's your friend too and he needed my help."</p><p>"What he <em>needs </em>is a different lawyer. And considering his crime, the shadier, the better."</p><p>"So you never had to bend the rules?" Santana snapped.</p><p>"Bend the rules, yeah. Frame a man? Not even close!"</p><p>"Azimio? Azimio was a ruthless killer. Who knows how many lives… children's lives… Kurt saved by doing what he did."</p><p>"By cheating the system!"</p><p>"Oh, come on, Q! We both know the system is far from perfect. Now you are hurting because it's Kurt."</p><p>"It's principle." Quinn spat.</p><p>"What did you say the other morning?" Santana reminded Quinn. "Huh? 'At the end of the day, you either did it or you didn't do it.' Azimio did it. And he's not even in prison anymore. I checked. Out on compassionate leave. End-stage liver disease."</p><p>"So what? At the end of the day, San, Kurt did it too. We have enough cops out there not playing by the rules."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next morning, Luke drove out of his house to work and as soon as he was a safe distance away, Finn jumped the fence to his house and kicked the door in. He then took out his phone and called 911.</p><p>"Hey, I'd like to report a break-in over on 28 Lynwood Place. Yeah, hope you're here in a hurry."</p><p>Finn then hung up the phone. That bought him around 10 minutes before the cops came. He started rummaging through every single drawer in the place, looking for any clues. He found what he was looking for just as he heard sirens approaching. He made it out of the house just as the cops pulled up and he slipped away unseen.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"These came from Barton's house?" Quinn asked, disbelievingly. Finn had just handed her a box of .223 ammunition that he had pocketed from Luke's house.</p><p>"That's the wrong question to be asking right now, Q. The correct question would be: are those the rounds that killed our ranger?"</p><p>"No. We're not doing it this way." Quinn snapped. Finn sighed.</p><p>"Okay. How about I return them after we make the arrest?"</p><p>"Look, you don't think I want this guy, too? He killed one of our own. But it means nothing unless we can prove that Barton was in possession of the murder weapon."</p><p>"Now we can." Tina said, walking over to them. "I checked the bar code. That box of ammo was purchased at the Temecula Gun Show about two months ago, along with four Mini-14 assault rifles. Guess who made the purchase?"</p><p>"Luke Barton." Finn and Quinn both said simultaneously.</p><p>"No. The L.A Sheriff's boys home."</p><p>"Assault weapons for a charity?" Quinn asked, confused.</p><p>"Right, except for it wasn't an official department charity. It was a personal charity, founded by your boy."</p><p>"Luke Barton." Quinn murmured.</p><p>"Let me guess, a large contribution was made to this charity right before Wade Davies' release?" Finn remarked. Tna nodded.</p><p>"More proof that Davies hired Barton to bust him out of custody."</p><p>Finn stood up.</p><p>"All right, let's tell Kurt." He said.</p><p>"And then we get a WARRANT." Quinn snapped. "We make a legitimate arrest. We do this by the book."</p><p>"You're such a stickler." Finn remarked. The two of them walked into Kurt's office but surprisingly, he wasn't there.</p><p>"Anyone seen the captain?" Quinn asked the bullpen.</p><p>"He hasn't been here all day." Puck replied.</p><p>"All day?" Quinn said, taking out her phone and calling him.</p><p>"You think Barton's got something to do with this?" Finn asked. Quinn put down her phone.</p><p>"Straight to voicemail. Tina, I need you to get a location on the captain ASAP."</p><p>TIna nodded and started typing keys furiously.</p><p>"I'm on it, just give me a few minutes."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Kurt drank shot after shot after shot, sitting in the corner booth of a restaurant and thinking about how his life was pretty much over. Suddenly, a man slipped into the booth opposite him and Kurt looked up to see Reed.</p><p>"Looks like you started without me." Reed remarked.</p><p>"Yeah, well. Why not, right?" Kurt sighed.</p><p>"You know, it seems my request to back off fell on deaf ears." He said. Kurt shrugged.</p><p>"I tried to steer my guy away. But your man, Barton, didn't exactly cover his tracks very well."</p><p>"Were you really okay with him killing that ranger?" Kurt asked.</p><p>"No." Reed snapped. "But it's not like he asked. You know, he's got this thing for frontier justice. But Veld takes the fall for this and no one is the wiser."</p><p>"He killed a cop." Kurt stated. "How can you live with that?"</p><p>"Look, at this point, Barton is off the reservation. We both have guys under our command like that now, don't we? Guys who like to color outside the line, but who can be very useful. You can try to put them on a short leash on them, but at the end of the day you can't always control what happens."</p><p>"It makes me sick." Kurt murmured.</p><p>"Scotch helps." Reed responded, chuckling. "And so should the knowledge that your career can continue."</p><p>Kurt took a deep breath and sighed.</p><p>"You know, not a day goes by that I don't regret what we did to Azimio Adams."</p><p>"That's funny. I don't think about it at all." Reed replied. Kurt downed one more shot before stumbling to his feet. "Yeah, go home and sleep it off, Kurt. Tomorrow, wake up and go to work. That's all any of us can do in this city."</p><p>Kurt stumbled out of the bar and into his car. As he sat in the front seat, he pulled out his phone and saved the audio recording, providing him with evidence that Barton killed the Ranger. Suddenly, Kurt heard the unmistakable cock of a gun coming from behind him and Luke Barton sat up in the back seat.</p><p>"Hello, Captain Hummel." He said.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0030"><h2>30. Chapter 30</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Quinn walked into the restaurant a couple of moments after Kurt left. She spotted Reed at his both and she stormed over to him.</p><p>"Where's Kurt?" Quinn snapped.</p><p>"I heard about you and your partner…" Reed started.</p><p>"Where is he?" She spat. Suddenly, a waitress walked over to them.</p><p>"Everything alright over here?" She asked.</p><p>"We're looking for the gentleman that was just here." Quinn said.</p><p>"The apple juice guy?" The waitress asked. "He had me bring, like, four rounds of apple juice. On the rocks. He said it was part of some prank he was playing."</p><p>"Apple juice… he wanted you to think he was drunk." Quinn murmured. "What did you guys talk about?" She demanded. Reed stood up but Quinn pushed him back down.</p><p>"Did Barton know he was here?" she asked.</p><p>"You're in my way, Detective." He growled before walking away. Quinn quickly called Finn.</p><p>"Finn, Kurt isn't here!" She shouted when he answered the phone. "I think he's in trouble."</p><p>"All right, Tina's got a cell ping from his car. Looks like it's at a house in Carson."</p><p>"You got an address?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"4415 Moreno Drive." He replied. "Last homeowner is… oh my god, Azimio Adams."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Kurt's hands were tied roughly behind his back and he was tied to a chair.</p><p>"You can kill me here, but it's just a matter of time…" Kurt started but he was cut off.</p><p>"Shut up." Luke Barton snapped as he tightened Kurt's restraints. "I'm not killing you. Sins of the past. Let me introduce to you Azimio Adams…"</p><p>The door to the house swung open and Azimio walked into the room. But this wasn't the Azimio Kurt remembered. The man was now sickly thin and he walked with a severe limp. However, what hadn't changed was the hatred in the man's eyes when he saw Kurt.</p><p>"Hey, Azimio, do you remember Captain Hummel here? He's the man who framed you for murder. So, here's how it happened: the well-respected captains couldn't let bygones be bygones when confronting the recently released inmate who he had sent away years earlier. He risked his career to get rid of him once. He decides to do it again, but this time things don't quite go his way. Luckily, I was on to him and you and came to save you."</p><p>"But you got here a little too late." Kurt finished. Luke nodded.</p><p>"Yup." He replied. He then took out a pistol and handed it to Azimio. Azimio picked it up and aimed…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"That's Kurt's car. They're here." Quinn murmured as they parked in front of the house.</p><p>"How do you want to play this?" Finn asked.</p><p>"Delicate." Quinn replied. She then turned the car back on and went flying towards the house. Finn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Um… Quinn?" Finn shouted as they came closer and closer to the glass doors of the house. Quinn just gritted her teeth and she sent the car through the doors. Guns blazing, Quinn took out Azimio and his henchmen while Finn chased after a fleeing Luke. The two of them raced down the street, Finn turning and diving for cover as Luke shot at her. Suddenly, Finn ducked behind a garbage can and hit. As Luke tiptoed towards him, Finn slipped around the side and approached him from behind, gun held aloft.</p><p>"You know, I was never really good at math. But I think that weapon's empty." He remarked, pointing at Luke's gun. Luke sighed and dropped the gun. Smiling, rather than shooting or handcuffing him, Finn dropped his own gun and rolled up his sleeves.</p><p>"I've been waiting for this." Finn growled. The two of them then proceeded to have an extremely intense fight. A flurry of hands, kicks and grapples flew around for a good couple of minutes before Finn finally had Luke pinned on the ground. Finn then took out his gun again and placed it under Luke's chin.</p><p>"You said we're not that different, you and I? Huh?" Finn growled as he started to squeeze the trigger. He ended up pulling the trigger and despite Luke's screams of fear, no bullet was released. Finn had sneakily emptied his gun. "You're under arrest." He smirked.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next day, Samuel Petry walked into the precinct and over to Finn's desk. Him and Quinn were just finishing the final bits of paperwork for the case.</p><p>"I'm headed home now. I just wanted to thank you for finding the men who did this." He said. Finn shook his hand.</p><p>"Oh, well, I had a little help, you know." Finn chuckled. "Not exactly one riot, one Ranger around here. Oh, and I need to give you something." Finn said. He opened his drawer and took out the flask that he retrieved at the crime scene at the very beginning. It was complete with the Texas Ranger logo on it. Finn gave it to Samuel. "That was your ranger's."</p><p>"You know what, son? I think Mark would've wanted somebody like you to have it."</p><p>Finn smiled.</p><p>"Thank you." He replied.</p><p>"And hey, if you ever decided to get back out to Texas, we could use a ranger like you."</p><p>Finn looked across the precinct at Quinn, who was busy working on paperwork. He smiled faintly.</p><p>"Nah, I gotta keep 'em honest out here."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"So this is it, huh?" Finn remarked, reading Kurt's letter of resignation in his office. Kurt was sitting, defeated, in his chair for possibly the last time. "You resign and Reed keeps his job at the Sheriff's."</p><p>"That's how it works." Kurt shrugged. "He can prove my involvement, I can't prove his. Barton destroyed the recording."</p><p>Finn sighed.</p><p>"When this goes public, they're gonna charge you with a felony, and then every arrest that you made, including the 400 with Quinn as your partner, are going to be thrown out or subject to appeal."</p><p>"Regrettably, yes." Kurt replied.</p><p>"That means hundreds of criminals that you and her put away might be back on the streets."</p><p>"Yeah, but… this is what I've come to realise, even if that weren't the case, even if I could go back and keep what I did a secret, I wouldn't."</p><p>"Yeah, well, you know what I realise? You have to."</p><p>"What do you mean?"</p><p>"Those convictions are Quinn's convictions, too. So this is about both of you, okay? Having all of those convictions wiped… it would kill her and you and I both know that. You made a mistake, a big one. But you're gonna find a way to live with it. And you're gonna make every day you do this job going forward all about doing it the right way."</p><p>"It's not that simple."</p><p>"Oh, I know. It's all kinds of complicated. But this is what you're gonna do, okay?"</p><p>"All right."</p><p>Finn smiled and nodded. He then leaned in.</p><p>"Oh, hey. There's something going down tonight and Quinn's gonna need as much backup as she can possibly get…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn picked up her bowling ball for the first time, in front of all of her friends, as well as many members of the Sheriff's department.</p><p>"Are you sure you want to do this?" Tina asked.</p><p>"I have no choice." She growled, determinedly, looking at the men from the Sheriff's department.</p><p>"So you really think you can bowl another perfect game?" Marley laughed.</p><p>"Marley…"</p><p>"I'm just saying that seems a bit… unlikely."</p><p>Suddenly, the members of the Sheriff's department walked up to them. They smirked at Quinn.</p><p>"We just wanted to say you did right by putting Barton and his guys away." One of them said. "They made the whole department look bad. But that doesn't mean there's a man or woman here that believes you bowled a perfect game."</p><p>"Hey, listen…" Quinn said. "I just, I just wanted to say that…"</p><p>"How does $1000 to the charity of my sister's choice sound to you, huh?" Santana announced, standing up.</p><p>"Oh, okay, now that sounds great. But you put $1000 in there for the charity of our choice when she doesn't."</p><p>"Oh, honey, you're not gonna get that. 'Cause he will." Santana stated, confidently. Quinn raised her hands.</p><p>"Woah, woah, woah. Look, this is fun. And, uh… nobody likes raising the stakes more than me, but gambling in California's illegal so…"</p><p>"$2000!" Finn exclaimed as he walked into the bowling alley. He walked over to Quinn and put his arm around her. "Nobody questions my partner's bowling skills."</p><p>Quinn took a deep breath nervously and she turned to Finn. The two of them walked out of earshot.</p><p>"Hey Quinn. Is everything okay?" He asked.</p><p>"Um… It wasn't quite perfect." She muttered.</p><p>"I-I'm sorry, what's that?" Finn asked, a huge grin on his face.</p><p>"I rounded up." She whispered.</p><p>"Rounded up? W-what does that mean?" Finn asked.</p><p>"A perfect score is 300. I bowled a 290."</p><p>Finn rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Do you want to have dinner with me tonight?" Finn blurted out. Quinn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Are you asking me out?" She asked, astonished. Finn blushed furiously and looked down.</p><p>"I mean, if you're into it…" He murmured. She beamed at him.</p><p>"I mean I'd love to… but are you sure it's not too soon, though? I mean, you still clearly have feelings for your ex-wife."</p><p>Finn sighed.</p><p>"Look, I'm always going to love her. But I know that she's gone and she isn't coming back. The only way to move on is forward, right? And here, to show that I've moved on, you can watch as I remove Rachel as my phone wallpaper."</p><p>Finn took out his phone and as he turned it on, Quinn's eyes widened when she saw the screensaver. The girl staring back at her looked eerily familiar. It was almost as if Quinn had seen her before. She shook her head. That was impossible, right? She watched as Finn replaced the wallpaper with a plain blue background. He then smiled at her.</p><p>"See? Now you have to go out with me!" He exclaimed. Quinn smiled at him.</p><p>"Sure, I'd love to."</p><p>Finn nodded.</p><p>"Okay, let's make a deal." He said. "You bowl a perfect game right here, right now and I'll pay for dinner. You don't and you're playing."</p><p>Quinn giggled.</p><p>"Deal." She replied. Her mind was whirring though. She could have sworn she had seen Rachel before. She was just trying to remember where from. An hour later, it hit her…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That night, Finn sat at the table, nervously. He hadn't been on a date in over a year and this wasn't just any date… this was a date with Quinn Fabray! He waited and waited and waited for 30 minutes. Eventually, just as he was about to give up and go home, Quinn walked into the restaurant. Finn's face broke out into a relieved smile as she walked over to him.</p><p>"Hi." Finn said.</p><p>"Hi. I'm sorry I'm late." She said. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Oh, no worries. So, they have tater tots as appetizers here, so this is basically like my favourite restaurant, so…"</p><p>Finn then noticed the expression on Quinn's face. It wasn't happiness. It was devastation, mixed with… sympathy.</p><p>"What's up?" Finn asked. "Something wrong?"</p><p>Quinn took a deep breath.</p><p>"I have to tell you something, and I think once I do, you're not gonna want me to stay." She murmured. Finn smiled comfortingly at her.</p><p>"Well, I doubt that, but you can give it a shot." He responded.</p><p>"When I saw that picture of your wife in the bowling alley, I thought I recognised her. Like I'd seen her before. And I should have said something to you, but I didn't. I was really hoping I was wrong, but it turns out, uh…" Quinn's voice trailed off. Finn looked at her, nervously. He had a sinking feeling about what Quinn was talking about but he hoped he was wrong. He hoped to god he was wrong.</p><p>"Where have you seen her before?" Finn murmured.</p><p>"In a case file. Ten months ago, uh… Mexican police raided the house of a known cartel hit man in Juarez, his name Jessie St. James. Jessie escaped, but they were able to recover documents and emails and photos of murder victims and assigned hits, hard targets of the cartel."</p><p>She took out a file and placed it, closed, on the table.</p><p>"And her photo's in there?" He whispered. Quinn nodded, tears in her eyes.</p><p>"Your wife's death wasn't an accident, Finn. I think Jessie killed her…"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0031"><h2>31. Chapter 31</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>El Paso, Texas, 18 months ago…</strong>
</p><p>"<em>Ooh, that was a big one." Rachel murmured. The two of them were lying on their bed in the morning, feeling their unborn baby kick against Rachel's belly.</em></p><p>
  <em>"I think you got a little linebacker in there." Finn remarked. She giggled.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No way!" She exclaimed. "He's a sensitive soul. I'm thinking… poet."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I hate to break it to you, honey, but you're carrying eight pounds of pure American bull rider right here."</em>
</p><p>"<em>No, singer."</em></p><p>
  <em>So, we have the first… bull riding linebacker poet who has a voice of gold?" Finn joked.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Why not? He can be everything."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Suddenly, Rachel's phone rang. The two of them groaned. Rachel reached for her phone but Finn held her back.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No. Don't answer it." He mumbled. She laughed.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I have to." She replied, as she saw that it was her daddy, Hiram, calling her.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Hey, Daddy." She said. She was greeted by her dad's nervous jabbering. She was very close to her due date so he was naturally nervous for them. "Wait, wait, slow down. No, we can't come visit you."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She turned to Finn and muted the call.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"He is freaking out!" She whispered. "I think he's more nervous than you are."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She then turned the phone back on and spoke to her father.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Daddy, don't worry. We're fine."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Finn then took the phone from her and placed it to his ear.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Hey Hiram. Hiram, Hiram, hey, everything's gonna be fine. We're about to have a nice breakfast. Your daughter is about to make me her special blueberry pancakes. Wait, actually, by the look I just received, I'll be making her famous blueberry pancakes. But, either way, we're all good. Yes, we love you. We're gonna go. But hey, have a great day. Your daughter loves you, I love you. Bye. Bye. See ya."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Finn hung up the phone. Rachel beamed at him and kissed him.</em>
</p><p>"<em>Thank you." She murmured against his lips.</em></p><p>
  <em>"Come on, I can handle your dad." He replied.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No, thank you for my blueberry pancakes." She laughed.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Present day…</strong>
</p><p>Finn chugged down yet another bottle of whiskey as he lay in his trailer. His sobriety had gone straight out the window the night Quinn had told him the news. He read through the case file over and over again. He thought back to his conversation with David Karofsky from all those months ago. He kept looking for anything, literally anything that could help guide him towards Jessie St. James, the hitman who might have killed Rachel.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"There are certain things that a man must learn before he's sent out into the world. One of them being… how to survive on his own." Quinn declared. Luke was graduating high school in a week and Quinn was desperate to spend time with him before he graduated. So, she decided to attempt to teach Luke how to put up a tent in the living room. "To show him that no matter what the world throws at him, he… will endure."</p><p>Suddenly, almost exactly when she stopped talking, the tent exploded into pieces. Haley and Santana, who were watching the exchange, started laughing hysterically.</p><p>"That was incredible!" Haley laughed. "Mom, you're Snapchat gold!"</p><p>She then walked away. Luke put a hand on her shoulder.</p><p>"Look, I get what you're doing here, Quinn."</p><p>"It's mom, or ma'am." She snapped. "And what am I doing?"</p><p>"You're worried I'm about to graduate and you want to bond. I get that. But what about a board or ball game?"</p><p>"Mm-mm. Too many other people around. You and I need to be alone in the woods, so I can teach you everything you need to know."</p><p>"What will we eat?" Luke asked. Quinn laughed.</p><p>"What will we eat? We're gonna eat what we catch. I'm bringing the fishing poles with us."</p><p>"But what if we don't catch anything?"</p><p>"Luke, your mother is taking you to the woods to impart wisdom." Santana said. "Your job is not to question, it is to listen."</p><p>Luke rolled his eyes and walked away. Once he was gone, Quinn turned to Santana.</p><p>"Thanks, San." She said. "I mean, there's so much that Sam didn't teach him that I need to teach him about what it means to be a Fabray. And I just feel like I haven't had enough time."</p><p>"Q, you have been an incredible parent. And he sees a Fabray man every day. You're two parents in one. But, I support you completely. Which is why I rented you this cabin." She said, handing Quinn a brochure for a cabin in Arrowhead. "With a stocked fridge."</p><p>"Strong move." Quinn laughed.</p><p>"Just some wisdom I have accumulated over the years."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn's eyes widened as he finally found some useful information. Jessie St. James was actually in U.S custody and had been arrested in an operation by a Task Force a couple of weeks ago! In fact, he was in California! Finn had an opportunity to talk to him! He got out of his bed, ignoring the wicked hangover he was feeling, and he sped to the LAPD station as fast as he could, calling his captain along the way.</p><p>Finn eventually found Jessie, Kurt and two uniformed officers getting into the elevator.</p><p>"Hey, whoa, whoa, whoa. Where are you guys taking him?!" Finn yelled as he ran over.</p><p>"The marshal's are taking him into federal custody." Kurt explained. "We caught a whale, Finn. Doesn't mean we get to keep him."</p><p>"I need to question him, Captain." Finn snapped.</p><p>"About what?" Kurt asked.</p><p>"Other cases." Finn replied, bluntly. Kurt sighed.</p><p>"Look, Finn, he's gonna be in a federal supermax for the next few lifetimes; you're gonna get your chance to ask him anything you want."</p><p>With that, the lift started to close and the last thing Finn saw was Jessie winking at him before the lift closed. Finn could tell that Jessie knew exactly who he was and who his wife was. Finn growled. For all he knew, the transport van could be hijacked. He couldn't wait until Jessie made it to the prison but it wasn't like he had much of a choice, right?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>An hour later, the transport van was driving down an abandoned road on the California border when suddenly, a hooded figure laid out a row of spikes on the road, causing the van to have its tires popped.</p><p>"What the hell?!" The driver shouted. The figure then started spraying the side of the van with machine gun fire. He ended up missing all of the guards but he scared them into submission. After they were safely no longer threats, the man threw a smoke grenade into the truck and then used the distraction to set an explosive to the back of the truck and blew up the doors. He dragged Jessie out the car and into his car and the two of them drove away together, all of this done in less than a minute. Jessie chuckled as he settled inside.</p><p>"Gracias, amigo." Jessie said, assuming that the man was part of the Mexican cartel. However, as the man pulled off his ski mask and revealed his face, Jessie was greeted by the last person he expected to see.</p><p>"Oh, de nada." Finn replied, smiling at him. "So, I believe you and I have to talk…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Later that day, Quinn, Tina and Kurt were going over the dash cam footage that they had recovered from the scene. They were instantly put on high alert and were called back to the station when the LAPD's high profile prisoner was broken out but Finn was nowhere to be seen. They watched as the guy pulled off the jailbreak with extreme ease and disappeared into an unmarked vehicle.</p><p>"So there was just one guy?" Quinn asked, surprised, as they went through the footage.</p><p>"Yep." Tina replied.</p><p>"And they're both alive?" Quinn asked, pointing to the two guards.</p><p>"Very lucky. Minor scratches." Kurt replied.</p><p>"No, it's not luck." Quinn snapped. "He didn't want to kill them. Otherwise, he'd have thrown a grenade in there."</p><p>"You think the cartel outsourced it?" Kurt asked.</p><p>"I'd say military." Quinn replied. "Whoever this guy is, he's a total pro."</p><p>"Oh, come on, Q!" Finn exclaimed, walking into the precinct. "It's like amateur hour! It's like you're watching an instructional video on how not to extract a prisoner. Look at him. He's spraying the windshield. That's safety glass! One shot through the side window, shattered."</p><p>"And let the gas escape in the process? No. <em>That </em>is precision. Dead center. Not a scratch on the marshals." Quinn replied. Nobody knew about their near-miss at dating from the other night and they weren't about to mention it at work.</p><p>Finn shrugged.</p><p>"All right, how 'bout that right there? Blowing up the side of the van?"</p><p>"Exactly where it's fortified with ballistic shields." Quinn remarked. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"So, we have a military trained assassin with a heart of gold, who's also freelancing as an LAPD mechanic?" Finn commented.</p><p>"I mean, when he puts it like that, it does sound implausible." Kurt stated.</p><p>"That's not what I said. This man is spinning my words!" Quinn exclaimed.</p><p>"I'm just glad, Kurt, you're here to see what I deal with on a daily basis." Finn responded.</p><p>"Guys, we got a hit on the getaway car." Tina interrupted them. "It was found in Elysian Park."</p><p>"See? Sloppy." Finn remarked.</p><p>"Shut up. Let's go." Quinn snapped. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"Uh, actually, Tina, you go with Quinn. I've got an NCO Armory contact. I'm gonna go give him a call, check in with him. I think the grenade launcher might be military issue."</p><p>"That's what I said, military!" Quinn exclaimed.</p><p>"Q, no one's saying that you're wrong. It's just your tone. All right, I'll see you guys." He said, jogging out of the precinct. Quinn sighed. She assumed that Finn didn't want to work with her, not because she thought he was involved, but because of the awkwardness from a few days before.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>A couple of minutes later, Quinn and Tina were in the park, admiring the car. However, it was pretty much useless given that whoever broke the prisoner out also blew up the car.</p><p>"He blew it up to cover his tracks and then ditched it for a new ride." Tina explained.</p><p>"And deliberately picked a spot where there'd be no security cameras. This guy knows our playbook."</p><p>Marley then walked over to them.</p><p>"Talk to me, Marley. What have we got?" Quinn asked, hopefully.</p><p>"Well, we've got what we in the forensic sciences call 'diddly-squat.' But I am thorough, and so I found this: size 11 men's boot print." She replied.</p><p>"Great. So, it could be anyone." Quinn stated, rolling her eyes.</p><p>"Well, no, it-it couldn't be someone with a size 9, an 8, 7. Need I go on?" Marley joked. "Look, the guy burned everything."</p><p>Quinn then noticed a license plate on the front of the car. It had clearly been peeled off before the car was burnt and then put back on.</p><p>"No, not everything." She said, pointing to it. "Notice that the area behind the plate is charred. Means he took it off, burned it, put it back on."</p><p>"Why would he do that, unless he wanted us to find the car?" Tina asked.</p><p>"We also have some tire tracks at the end of the road, heading east." Marley added. Quinn started walking away.</p><p>"Where are you going, Quinn?" Tina called.</p><p>"West!" She replied.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0032"><h2>32. Chapter 32</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Finn slurped on his slushie as he looked at the man tied up before him. Jessie was chained from the ceiling and the two men glared at each other, pure hatred in their eyes. Eventually, Finn stood up and walked over to him.</p><p>"Look, I know there's like a specific amount of time I'm supposed to take before I start grilling you. But you're the professional torturer, right? I'm just a corn cob-smoking rube from Texas. That and I'm bored, so… let's get into it, shall we? Did you kill my wife?"</p><p>Jessie smirked at him.</p><p>"You're gonna have to be more specific. I kill a lot of people."</p><p>Finn didn't lose his temper.</p><p>"Rachel Berry-Hudson. El Paso, last September."</p><p>"Doesn't ring a bell." Jessie grunted in reply.</p><p>"Then why was her name and number found in your house?"</p><p>"Maybe she gave it to me. Is that her?" He asked, nodding at a picture of Rachel in the corner of the room. "Mm, pretty girl. No, no. Her, I'd remember."</p><p>"You don't get to look at that." Finn growled.</p><p>"Sorry. Just, not being able to look at a hot piece like that… now that's torture." Jessie smirked. Finn sighed and walked around the room. He picked up a packet of salt grains. He ripped it open and started grinding it against Jessie's gash on his forehead. Jessie screamed in agonising pain for a couple of seconds before Finn finally relented. He was committing countless felonies right now but he didn't care. All he cared about was getting answers, even if he had to die trying.</p><p>Meanwhile, Quinn had just pulled up to his trailer. She wanted to talk about what had happened between them, or rather, what didn't happen to try and clear the air between them. Finn was, quite frankly, the best partner she'd ever had and she didn't want to lose that. Just as Quinn approached the door to the trailer, Finn stepped out.</p><p>"Hey, Quinn! What are you doing?" He asked.</p><p>"We need to talk. Let's go inside." She said, walking towards the door but Finn stopped her.</p><p>"Uh, actually, the place is a mess and you didn't call, so…"</p><p>Quinn raised an eyebrow. Finn seemed extremely nervous but was playing it off.</p><p>"How many times have you come by my house uninvited?"</p><p>"Well, that's because your lovely sister extended an open invitation. Unfortunately, I have not offered that to you."</p><p>Quinn sighed and decided to leave their conversation for another day and just talk about the case.</p><p>"Okay, whatever, listen. Something is not right with this one. Got a hit man who has an open shot on two marshals and doesn't take it. He knew the transport route. He wanted us to find the getaway car."</p><p>"So what are you saying?" Finn asked.</p><p>"I'm saying I think it's an inside job." She replied quietly. "And I don't know who we can trust on this one."</p><p>Finn sighed.</p><p>"Listen, Q. I'm gonna tell you something. But you can't tell anyone else, or I'll deny it. All right? I think you're right and you're a good cop. Look, we'll tackle this tomorrow but next time, just give me a ring."</p><p>"No, let's do it tonight!" Quinn exclaimed. "I had to cancel my camping trip at Lake Arrowhead, lost the whole deposit."</p><p>An idea came to Finn's mind…</p><p>"Oh, wow. So that cabin's just gonna sit up there all empty?" He remarked.</p><p>"Yeah." Quinn spat.</p><p>"That's terrible. You know what? You're right. Let's get on it. I'm gonna grab my jacket."</p><p>Finn then walked back into his trailer, leaving Quinn outside. Quinn was confused and a little suspicious about Finn's weird behavior. Then, she saw it… a footprint in the sand identical to the one they found in the park. And what's more, Finn had the means, motive and opportunity to kidnap Jessie: he is an ex-SEAL so had near-perfect accuracy with a weapon, he's a cop so he knew the transport route and the park's camera layout, and he wasn't about to shoot the two marshals. Suddenly, she was pulled from her train of thoughts when Finn emerged from the tin can.</p><p>"All righty! All right! Let's go!" He exclaimed, cheerfully walking towards her car. Quinn didn't follow him though.</p><p>"You know, I gotta use the bathroom." She said, walking towards the trailer.</p><p>"Quinn, no, no, no!" He exclaimed, running towards her but it was too late. Quinn took a deep breath and opened the trailer. However, what she saw was completely unexpected. The trailer was completely empty. "Yeah, see, the uh… the plumbing's been out for weeks, so I've just been peeing in the ocean. It's quite liberating. You should try it."</p><p>Quinn shut the trailer. Maybe she was wrong. Of course she was wrong! Finn would never do something like that! She walked to her car and the two of them got inside and drove away, leaving Jessie tied up and locked up in the trailer bathroom…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next morning, Quinn was sitting in her home, drinking a cup of coffee when Santana walked into the kitchen.</p><p>"Good morning, Quinn." She said. Quinn looked up at her with exhausted eyes. "Did you even sleep at all last night?"</p><p>"No, I couldn't sleep." Quinn mumbled in reply.</p><p>"Oh, I had trouble, too. Luke is graduating! Oh my gosh… it makes me feel old!"</p><p>"No, this was work stuff. Got my head all spun around."</p><p>Santana sighed.</p><p>"Let me guess… Finn." She remarked. Quinn nodded. "What did he do this time?"</p><p>"I don't know, but it's so crazy. I feel guilty even considering he may have done it."</p><p>"Wow." Santana murmured, her eyes wide. "Well, you know him better than anyone. Do you think he's capable of doing whatever it is?"</p><p>"San, if I say yes, it means deep down inside I do not believe in him. And I don't want that."</p><p>"So, what does your gut tell you?"</p><p>"My gut says I need an antacid." Quinn said and she grabbed her keys and left the house.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>At that very moment, Finn and Jessie had just pulled up to a new location for their 'questioning.' Finn tied Jessie up to a chair in the middle of the room and Finn paced around him.</p><p>"Any tips you have, you know, on, uh… torture or anything like that are always welcome." Finn stated.</p><p>"What's the end game here?" Jessie asked. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Well, it depends on how long it takes you to tell the truth."</p><p>"No, I get that part. Then what?"</p><p>"I let you go." Finn smirked. Jessie chuckled. "Yeah, you'll run. I'll hunt you down, and then I'll shoot you in the face like a gentleman and that'll be the end of it."</p><p>Jessie chuckled.</p><p>"A cop gonna murder someone in cold blood? You're just not that kind of man."</p><p>"Guess we'll just have to wait and see." Finn remarked. Jessie shook his head.</p><p>"You've had me here for, what? Ten hours? And the trailer before that? Still got all my fingers, toes, teeth. You're scared."</p><p>"Of you?" Finn laughed.</p><p>"Of yourself." Jessie replied. "Yeah, see, to truly break a man, there's certain lines you got to cross. You're not ready."</p><p>"Hm, fair enough." Finn replied, standing up. He grabbed a small axe from the corner of the room and he swung it at one of Jessie's restrained hands, causing the blade to cut a deep gash and break his knuckles. Jessie cried out in pain. Finn smirked at him.</p><p>"Better? Thanks for the tip."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn walked into the precinct and surprisingly, he wasn't there yet. She sighed and stormed over to Tina's desk where she was sitting.</p><p>"Where's Finn?" She snapped.</p><p>"He's not in yet." Tina replied. "You try his phone?"</p><p>"Three times. What's so important he can miss work with a fugitive out there? I'm the one that's got a kid graduating in 24 hours. Track his phone."</p><p>Tina raised an eyebrow and sighed.</p><p>"Seriously? That's a violation of trust. You don't think…?" Tina's voice trailed off when she saw the look on Quinn's face. "You're the boss."</p><p>She typed in a couple of keys on her computer before looking up at Quinn.</p><p>"Hmm. Looks like we won't be seeing Finn anytime soon." She remarked.</p><p>"Why's that?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Well, he's a few hours away in Lake Arrowhead."</p><p>Quinn groaned and put her head in her hands. Tina had just confirmed her suspicions.</p><p>"Near Cedar Grove Lane?" Quinn asked. Tina looked at her computer and nodded.</p><p>"Yeah. How'd you know?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn sat by the roaring fireplace of the cabin, making a poker illuminated with heat. Jessie watched him and raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"You gonna burn me with that thing now?" He asked. Finn shook his head.</p><p>"No, but that's a good idea. I was just going to make toasted marshmallows. Jeez, Jessie. Everything about torture with you?"</p><p>"You're not even asking the right questions." Jessie snarled. "You keep wanting to know, did I kill her. When you know I didn't. I didn't slip the death juice in her drink."</p><p>Finn spun around and faced him, his eyes wide.</p><p>"What you really want to know is did I give the order." Jessie finished. "Right? See, that would be a better question."</p><p>"Did you?" Finn asked, taking a sip of a beer he found in the fridge.</p><p>"Or, a more interesting question would be… what did she look like?" Jessie smirked. "You know, at the end. Did she die immediately or just gurgle her last few breaths?"</p><p>Finn walked over to Jessie and leaned in so that they were face to face. Finn shook his head and clicked his tongue.</p><p>"No. You weren't there, silly." Finn chuckled and he started to walk away.</p><p>"Yes, I was." Jessie replied. "The whole time, watching, waiting. You two were so cute together, eating those blueberry pancakes."</p><p>Finn stopped walking and he threw his beer against the wall before sprinting back over to Jessie and hitting him fiercely across the face. Jessie merely laughed.</p><p>"I waited till she went to the hospital to have the baby, and then I gave the order."</p><p>Finn hit Jessie a couple more times before putting a gun to his chin. He didn't pull the trigger though and Jessie knew he wouldn't. Jessie laughed, spitting a broken tooth out.</p><p>"I told you. You're not ready."</p><p>Suddenly, a twig snapping outside rang through the cabin. Finn kicked Jessie's chair over and he walked towards the door of the cabin, leaving Jessie a mere couple of inches from the burning poker…</p><p>Finn stepped outside the house, his gun raised, and he tiptoed around the front corner. When he turned the corner, he was greeted by Quinn, her gun raised. He sighed in relief and put his gun away.</p><p>"Quinn." He murmured.</p><p>"Is he in there?!" Quinn snapped. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Look, the less you know about this, the better. Leave, Quinn." He said, quietly.</p><p>"It's too late for that." She spat. "Why, Finn? That's what I need to know: why?"</p><p>"He killed Rachel." Finn growled.</p><p>"You believe that?" Quinn remarked.</p><p>"You told me yourself. You saw it in the file."</p><p>"Yeah, I know. I gave the file to you myself! So now, you're… you're a killer?! There is no law, there is no justice."</p><p>"THIS IS JUSTICE!" Finn bellowed.</p><p>"No, this is murder, Finn." She shouted back. "I know you better than anyone. You're a good cop and you're a good man. Hell, possibly the best I've ever known. You risk your life for people you don't even know day in and day out. I'm not gonna let you do this. I'm taking him in!"</p><p>Quinn stormed towards the door and Finn tried to stop her but he couldn't.</p><p>"Finn!" She shouted as she walked inside. Finn sighed.</p><p>"What did you expect to find, Quinn?" Finn stated as he walked inside. When he did, his eyes widened…</p><p>Jessie was gone, his restraints lying ripped and broken on the ground, along with the burning poker!</p><p>The two of them looked at each other and took off running in opposite directions. He couldn't have gone too far. Quinn ran towards the hilly, mountainous area behind the cabin and Finn took the forest area next to it.</p><p>Jessie took off through the forest, clutching his limp hand. He eventually made it through the forest and made it to the cliff opposite Quinn.</p><p>"Freeze!" She shouted, her gun raised. He ignored her and sprinted past, jumping off the cliff and falling 100 feet into the rapids below. At this point, Finn made it towards them.</p><p>"NO!" He shouted as he saw Jessie fall. He sprinted towards the edge, ready to jump, but Finn held him back.</p><p>"No, no, no, no, no! Finn, no! Please don't!" She begged. Finn shook his head, tears streaming down his cheeks. "Nobody can survive that, okay? He's gone. It's over."</p><p>Finn sat on the edge of the cliff, put his head in his hands and cried…</p><p>Eventually, he stood up and faced her.</p><p>"Okay. Let's go." He said.</p><p>"Where?" Quinn asked, dumbfounded.</p><p>"Turn me in…"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0033"><h2>33. Chapter 33</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>That night, Finn and Quinn stood in Kurt's office and Finn was preparing himself to admit to breaking out Jessie. He took a deep breath and started talking.</p><p>"I'd like to start by saying, um… Quinn had nothing to do with this." Finn said. Quinn laughed.</p><p>"This guy!" She chuckled. "Un-freaking-believable. You hear this?"</p><p>"Just cut it out, Q, okay?" He growled, glaring at her.</p><p>"Why? So you could take the credit?" Quinn remarked. Kurt looked at them, perplexed at what was going on. Quinn looked extremely happy but Finn looked extremely angry and almost… resigned and defeated.</p><p>"Wait, so… so we have Jessie?" Kurt asked, excitedly. "That's fantastic!"</p><p>"No. No. I had Gideon…" Finn started but he was once again cut off by Quinn.</p><p>"I had, I! It's always 'I' with this guy. He's the 'I' guy!" Quinn exclaimed. "There's no 'I' in team. We were supposed to do this together."</p><p>"What do you mean? I had him and you…"</p><p>They started arguing over one another, leaving Kurt even more confused than before.</p><p>"Guys!" He shouted, shutting them up. "Do we have Jessie? Do you do something awful? I can handle it, I just need to know what it is. What happened?"</p><p>"Okay, here's what happened." Quinn said. "We tracked Jessie to a cartel safe house and when we got there, he was gone."</p><p>Kurt looked at them and raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Wait, so you didn't blow anything up or cause a ten-car pileup or jump off a building?"</p><p>"That is correct." Quinn stated, confidently.</p><p>"He just… got away?" Kurt asked. Quinn nodded. "That I can handle. I'm not pleased but given the buildup, I thought my career was over."</p><p>"Nope. Nobody's career is over today." Quinn said, looking right at Finn. "Right?"</p><p>They left the office moments later and as soon as they did, Finn ran over to Quinn.</p><p>"Quinn. You didn't have to do that." He said.</p><p>"I know." She replied.</p><p>"Thanks." Finn said, quietly. Quinn simply nodded at him. Finn walked out of the precinct moments later and once he was gone, Quinn turned around and walked back into Kurt's office.</p><p>"There's something you're not telling me." Kurt stated. "What's going on, Quinn?"</p><p>Quinn took a deep breath and sighed.</p><p>"Uh… I'm gonna need a new partner."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That night, Finn cleaned up his trailer and put away the Rachel Berry-Hudson file. He now knew that Jessie was indeed involved in her death but what was killing him was that he never got the justice that Rachel and all of the other people who he killed deserved by throwing Jessie in jail. It was all his fault, and what's more was that Finn could sense that Jessie was still alive. Nobody would believe him but he knew it for certain. Suddenly, Finn accidentally dropped his coffee mug on the ground and his eyes widened. He was dragged back into another flashback.</p><p>"<em>Hey Hiram. Hiram, Hiram, hey, everything's gonna be fine. We're about to have a nice breakfast. Your daughter is about to make me her special blueberry pancakes. Wait, actually, by the look I just received, I'll be making her famous blueberry pancakes. But, either way, we're all good. Yes, we love you. We're gonna go. But hey, have a great day. Your daughter loves you, I love you. Bye. Bye. See ya."</em></p><p>
  <em>Finn hung up the phone. Rachel beamed at him and kissed him.</em>
</p><p>"<em>Thank you." She murmured against his lips.</em></p><p>
  <em>"Come on, I can handle your dad." He replied.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No, thank you for my blueberry pancakes." She laughed. Finn smiled and walked into the kitchen. He would do absolutely anything for that girl. He would make her a million blueberry pancakes for her. He would open a vein in his arm if he could bleed out gold for her. He was hopefully, irretrievably in love with her and every day, he thanked his lucky stars that he had met her that night on Christmas Eve. Finn poured the pancake mix and blueberries into a bowl and started mixing them. Then, when he put the bowl on the table, his hand slipped and the bowl went crashing to the ground, spilling everywhere.</em>
</p><p>They hadn't eaten blueberry pancakes! Jessie wasn't watching them, he was listening! Finn dived into his car and sped towards Quinn's house. He pounded on the door.</p><p>"Quinn! Quinn! Quinn!" He shouted as Quinn walked over to the door. She eventually opened it and Finn walked inside.</p><p>"Q, there were no blueberry pancakes that morning!" He jabbered like a mental patient. "Jessie said we were eating blueberry pancakes the morning that she died, but I dropped the mix!"</p><p>"Were-were you drinking, Finn?" She asked, quietly.</p><p>"A… a little bit. Look, Quinn, it doesn't matter. Jessie lied. Why would he lie?"</p><p>"Maybe he misspoke because you were torturing him!" Quinn snapped.</p><p>"No, I was questioning him." Finn corrected her.</p><p>"You told me you broke a couple of his fingers!" She exclaimed.</p><p>"Sprained, partially, like, fractured. Look, Q, he was fine when I was questioning him."</p><p>Quinn put her head in her hands.</p><p>"Finn, Finn, I-I can't…"</p><p>"No, you <em>can </em>do this! We are gonna fly under the radar, we're gonna go down to Texas, we're gonna find out what they know."</p><p>"I'm getting a new partner!" Quinn shouted, interrupting him. Finn's face dropped.</p><p>"What?" He asked, quietly. Tears ran down Quinn's cheeks.</p><p>"Kurt's reassigning us tomorrow."</p><p>Finn took a deep breath and nodded.</p><p>"Well, that… that must've been a difficult decision for you." Finn murmured.</p><p>"It was." She nodded. "You know, you told me once that you would not kill yourself because she would be ashamed of you. But that's exactly what you're doing! You're drowning! Okay? And you got to figure out, once and for all, do you want to live? Cause if you do, Finn, you got to let her go, man."</p><p>"Yeah, I know. I know." Finn whispered, chuckling. "I can't."</p><p>He then turned and walked towards the door, banging his head against it, frustratedly.</p><p>"Finn!" Santana exclaimed, walking into the room. Finn slowly turned around to face her. Santana was probably the only person who could get through to Finn. "We are your family. You know that. You are part of this family. We love you."</p><p>"You're a patient woman, Q. I'm surprised you lasted this long." Finn said, thickly. "You guys have a good night."</p><p>Finn then swung open the door and walked out, ignoring Santana calling him back. Once he was gone, Quinn put her head in her hands and walked out of the room.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn walked into the precinct the next morning, already dressed in the extremely fancy and expensive pantsuit she was going to wear to Luke's graduation later that day. She couldn't believe that her baby was graduating! Suddenly, she almost bumped into Tina, who was holding a mug of coffee in her hand.</p><p>"Hey, hey. Tina, woah! You know how hard it is to get a coffee stain out of virgin silk?" She exclaimed.</p><p>"That is a hell of a suit, Quinn. Who died?"</p><p>"Hey, it's my son's graduation tonight. And what if someone had died? I mean, we're cops. That's a risky joke."</p><p>"I'm sorry, I just wanted to tell you that you clean up good." Tina replied.</p><p>"I know. I got mirrors." Quinn laughed. "So what are you working on? What are these?" She asked, pointing to the various files on Tina's desk.</p><p>"Finn's arrest files from El Paso. Told me to flag any connections to the cartel."</p><p>"When? When did he tell you that?"</p><p>"Yesterday. Early evening. Why?" Tina asked, confused.</p><p>"You know what, Tina? You need to shut this down."</p><p>"Okay. But do you at least want to know what I found?" She asked. Quinn shook her head.</p><p>"No. Because there's nothing to find."</p><p>Tina looked down and Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"Is there? Is there something to find?"</p><p>"Well, it's hard to say for sure, but I was able…"</p><p>"Okay, you know what?" Quinn interrupted. "I'm not going down this road. I told Finn it's a dead end. It's a dead end." She decided. "Is it a dead end?"</p><p>Tina sighed.</p><p>"Do you want me to tell you or not?"</p><p>"I don't even want… I don't even want to know." She stated. Tina rolled her eyes and moments later, Quinn was back and she took the file from Tina's hands. "What'd you find?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"So, what can I do for you, Finn?" Hiram Berry asked. Finn had driven to his house as he believed that he owed the man an explanation about his recent findings. After all, Hiram Berry was not only the city attorney but he was also Rachel's father.</p><p>"I believe I'm responsible for Rachel's death, Hiram."</p><p>"Finn…" Hiram sighed and put a comforting hand on Finn's shoulder. "Finn, it was an accident. You need to let it go."</p><p>"Hiram, don't ask me how… but I know it was a hit."</p><p>"A hit? On my daughter?" Hiram chuckled, disbelievingly. "For what?"</p><p>"If I back off the cartel in Texas." Finn replied.</p><p>"Because you busted a couple of low-level guys? Stop it! You need to move on."</p><p>"That's what I'm trying to do here, Hiram. I'm just trying to come clean so I can make sense of everything."</p><p>"By telling me this nonsense?!" Hiram snapped. "By getting me to fall into this abyss with you? I won't do it."</p><p>"Poppy?" A small voice suddenly said from the doorway. Finn and Hiram turned to see a young girl named Rosie - one of Rachel's siblings' children and one of Hiram's grandchildren. "You said we were going to the park." She said.</p><p>"We are, sweetie. In just a minute." Hiram replied. "You remember Uncle Finn."</p><p>"Hi, Finn." He smiled. "Last time I saw you, you were that big!" He exclaimed, making a gesture the size of four inches.</p><p>"I was never that big." She giggled.</p><p>"I'll meet you outside in a second, sweetie." Hiram said. Rosie nodded and left the room. Once she was gone, Finn stood up and faced Hiram. Hiram put an arm around him.</p><p>"I know it hurts. I feel it every day. But you have to let go. It's what she'd want." Hiram said. Finn sighed.</p><p>"I know. I know. And I'm trying, Hiram. I really am." Finn said, as he walked out of the room.</p><p>"Yeah. Forget that nonsense about Jessie!" Hiram responded. Finn stopped walking and slowly turned around.</p><p>"How did you know it was Jessie?" Finn growled. Hiram's eyebrows furrowed in confusion but deep down, he was scared. Finn had just discovered his deepest, darkest secret.</p><p>"What?" Hiram asked.</p><p>"I never said his name." Finn spat. Hiram scoffed.</p><p>"That's who you had in custody. I-I just assumed."</p><p>That's when everything clicked together. Hiram being extremely nervous that day, more so than even Finn or Rachel were. Him calling them and Finn telling him that they were having blueberry pancakes. Him not knowing that Finn dropped the bowl on the ground and them eating cereal instead.</p><p>"You were so nervous that morning." Finn remembered.</p><p>"What morning?" Hiram asked.</p><p>"When she was killed." Finn murmured. Hiram sighed.</p><p>"I thought we just got past this." Hiram scoffed. Finn shook his head. Everything was rushing back to him and he was piecing things together to form an extremely horrific puzzle.</p><p>"Rachel was 9 month pregnant and you wanted her to get out of town. Why?" Finn spat.</p><p>"It-it wasn't logical. Uh… I was nervous." Hiram stammered.</p><p>"Or maybe you were afraid." Finn muttered. "I told <em>you </em>about the pancakes."</p><p>"What?" Hiram spat.</p><p>"The cartel wasn't watching us. Why would they be watching us? They were listening."</p><p>"Okay, I think you should leave." Hiram snapped. Finn didn't though. He continued…</p><p>"But why would they be listening to me? Because I was just chasing low-level cartel guys, right? You said so yourself. They were listening to <em>you…</em>"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0034"><h2>34. Chapter 34</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Hey, San. Got to finish a couple of things at work, and then I'll be home." Quinn said as she answered her phone. She was driving down to Finn's trailer to talk to him about the new leads in his case as although he technically wasn't her partner anymore, of course she was going to help him.</p><p>"Okay, we'll wait for you, then." Santana replied.</p><p>"Cool, I'm on my way." Quinn said and she hung up her phone. As soon as she was off the phone, Quinn felt a plastic bag pulled roughly over her head and started suffocating her. She slowly felt consciousness slip away and barely felt herself being carried into an unmarked SUV…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"So now what? You just… you work for the cartel? Is that how this works?" Finn asked. After he had come to the realisation, he had sat back down in Hiram's study, desperate to hear the tale about he went from the most loving father Finn had ever met to a man who caused his own daughter's murder.</p><p>"I don't say no anymore." Hiram replied. "What choice do I have? I have other daughters. Grandchildren. You don't know what these people are capable of."</p><p>Finn looked Hiram straight in the eye and raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"I have a pretty good idea." Finn remarked. Hiram sighed and looked down. "Who ordered the hit, Hiram? Who's responsible for killing your daughter? My wife. My child. Your grandson."</p><p>Hiram started sobbing at this point. Eventually, once the tears faded, he finally responded.</p><p>"Karofsky." He replied. "It's been all David Karofsky."</p><p>At that moment, Finn heard a car pull up to the house so he walked outside and saw a cartel SUV and climbing out of the passenger seat was a very much alive Jessie St. James. In addition, Rosie was still standing outside and Jessie, very cleverly, crouched down next to her, knowing full-well that Finn wouldn't shoot with her there.</p><p>"Hey there, sweetie." Jessie said to Rosie. "Is that your Uncle Finn? You think he might go for a ride to see his partner?"</p><p>Finn's eyes widened. They had Quinn! Just then, Hiram walked outside and saw everything that was going on. Finn slowly put his gun away and walked towards Jessie.</p><p>"Come here, Rosie!" Hiram cried. Rosie ran towards him and Hiram held her to him. Meanwhile, the cartel men removed all of the guns from Finn's person and prepared to throw him into the truck. The last thing Finn saw was Hiram shaking his head.</p><p>"I'm sorry, Finn." He said. "I didn't mean for it to end this way."</p><p>"Come on, Hiram. It was supposed to end this way…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>A couple of minutes later, Finn had a burlap sack placed over his face so he couldn't see and it was only pulled off after he was tied to a chair. Finn took in his surroundings. He was in some random basement underground. No, this wasn't a basement. From the tracks in front of him and the sounds around him, he gauged that he was somewhere underground on a train line. But the worst part was tied up beside him was none other than Quinn.</p><p>"Hey." She said.</p><p>"Yeah?" Finn asked?"</p><p>"This is all your fault, you know that, right?" She snapped.</p><p>"Oh, that's a classy move, Q, pointing out the obvious." Finn remarked.</p><p>"Hmm." Quinn chuckled.</p><p>"You know what really sucks though?" Finn stated.</p><p>"Yeah, that this is the most important day of my son's life, and I'm here bleeding out with you."</p><p>"I was going to say that we're missing NFL Sunday but yeah, that's… that's bad too. But worse is the fact that you're gonna die because you're my partner when technically, you're not even my partner."</p><p>"Yeah, that's, uh… that is worse." She murmured.</p><p>"Much worse. Oh, and Finn?"</p><p>"Yeah?"</p><p>"I, uh… I looked into your wife's death, and, um… you need to know that, um… it wasn't your fault that she died. It was…"</p><p>"Hiram Berry. Yeah, I know."</p><p>"When'd you find out?" Quinn asked, surprised.</p><p>"This afternoon, around 4. You?"</p><p>"About, uh… 3:50."</p><p>Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"So you looked at your watch when you found out?" Finn laughed.</p><p>"No, I have a flawless internal clock." She replied.</p><p>"An internal clock?" Finn chuckled. "Oh yeah? So what time is it right now?"</p><p>"6:42." Quinn replied.</p><p>"6:42? Hey, bad guys, who has a watch on?!" Finn called out to the darkness. "I want to know exactly what time it is right now."</p><p>"I swear to God, if I have to listen to you two for one more second, I'm going to kill myself." Jessie shouted, walking into the room.</p><p>"You could let us go." Finn suggested.</p><p>"Yeah, you could let us go." Quinn laughed. Jessie rolled his eyes.</p><p>"Sure thing. But first, I need some answers. And I don't expect to get the truth without some persuasion."</p><p>"Aw… yeah, torture. That's his whole thing. He wasn't hugged enough as a child, so…" Finn explained to Quinn. She rolled her eyes. Jessie suddenly turned on a device that looked like an eerie defibrillator and then turned to them.</p><p>"So… who wants to go first?"</p><p>"I will." Finn replied. Jessie smirked.</p><p>"Good. I'm glad you said that." He said as he walked towards Quinn. Finn's heart dropped.</p><p>"No, no, no. Wait a minute. No, no, no. Torture me, not her." Finn remarked.</p><p>"Oh, I am. I'm gonna make you watch your partner die." Jessie responded.</p><p>"Technically, we're not partners anymore." Quinn added.</p><p>A high-pitched electronic whining, indicating that the machine was fired up, cut through the air and a tub of water was placed at Quinn's feet.</p><p>"So, did you know that it takes less than 110 volts to stop the average pacemaker? And that defib, it runs five times that." Jessie informed Quinn. "Now, the fun part… seeing which gives out first: pacemaker or heart."</p><p>"Hey, look, Jessie, ask me whatever you want. I'm an open book." Finn snapped.</p><p>"Mr. Berry is the cartel's highest-ranking friend in L.A. Be a shame to waste him if we didn't have to. Who else knows about him?"</p><p>"No one." Finn answered honestly. "Just her and I. I swear."</p><p>"No, no, no. I believe you, I do. But we went ahead and rented these, so…" Jessie remarked, pointing to the defibrillator. Finn and Quinn started to panic.</p><p>"Hey, no, no. Come on, kill <em>me</em>!" Finn exclaimed. Jessie ignored him and put the defibrillator on Quinn's chest. Her screams cut through the air like a knife. However, despite everything, Quinn managed to not die.</p><p>"Oh, come on!" Jessie shouted, frustrated. "All right, pacemaker one, defib nada. Round two. Who else knows about Delgado?" He asked again.</p><p>"No one." Finn growled. "Do me. Quinn, it's gonna be okay. It's gonna be okay. Kill me. Come on! KILL ME!"</p><p>The defibrillator was placed back on Quinn but once again, Quinn pulled through. She could feel death getting closer though, dragging her in like a magnetic force.</p><p>"Oh, yeah, that was close." Jessie giggled. "He's almost there. Hey, you know what this reminds me of? Rachel. You know, I told you I was there that day. Right? David asked me to follow, so I watched the whole thing. It was gruesome. No one, NO ONE, could have survived the poison we injected her with. But you know what? She did."</p><p>"Come on, dude. Stop it." Quinn panted.</p><p>"Hey!" Jessie shouted. "I'm trying to tell a story here. Poison didn't kill her. She was still breathing. I had to put my hand over her mouth. And that, my friend, is the story of how your wife died. The end."</p><p>Strangely, rather than becoming enraged, Finn simply started chuckling and giggling. He started mumbling something under his breath as he laughed.</p><p>"Hey, find out what he's babbling about." Jessie snapped at one of his henchmen. The man walked over to him and that's when Finn pounced…</p><p>He dived at the man. While Jessie had been telling his story, Finn had been working on the knot that was tying his arms back and he had unknotted it just in time. He grabbed the gun from the henchman and shot all of the henchmen. He watched as Jessie started to run away but he didn't chase after him. He had something more important to do. He lowered the gun and started untying Quinn from her bonds.</p><p>"You okay?" He asked. She nodded.</p><p>"American-made pacemaker." She remarked. Finn laughed.</p><p>"Damn right it is. I'm going after Jessie." He told her as she stumbled to her feet. He ran down the corridor and Quinn went a different direction. The two of them tiptoed through the decrepit network of train tracks. Eventually, Finn turned a corner and he felt himself get rammed into a wall, causing him to drop his gun. He then used his strength advantage to throw Jessie against the opposite wall. The two of them eventually threw themselves onto an active track and Finn had pinned Jessie to the ground and was punching every inch of him he could reach. Quinn had reached them at this point and her heart stopped when she saw a train barreling towards Finn and Jessie.</p><p>"FINN!" She screamed. As they watched the train coming towards them, Finn held Jessie against the ground.</p><p>"Where's David Karofsky?" He asked. Jessie didn't answer.</p><p>"Finn, get out of there!" Quinn screamed.</p><p>"WHERE CAN I FIND HIM?!" Finn bellowed. The train was a mere couple of seconds from them at this point. "TELL ME WHERE I CAN FIND HIM!"</p><p>Soon, the train was right upon them and Quinn watched as the train bulldozed through Jessie and Finn.</p><p>"Finn!" She screamed. Eventually, once the train had passed, she saw Finn standing on the other side of the tracks. He nodded at her and when Quinn blinked, he was gone…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The next day, after RJ's graduation, Quinn walked onto the beach where Finn's trailer was parked and she opened the door. When she walked in, her eyes widened… it was completely empty. Finn wasn't there, and nor was his car or any of his stuff. She growled and sped to the precinct to question the only person who would possibly know where he was…</p><p>As Quinn stormed into the precinct, she saw two uniformed officers leading Hiram Berry towards the holding cell. Gritting her teeth, she walked over to him and grabbed him from the officers.</p><p>"Take a break, fellas. I'll bring him to holding." She said. The officers nodded and left. Quinn and a now-arrested Hiram walked into the elevator as soon as the doors closed, Finn pulled the emergency stop lever and turned to Hiram.</p><p>"Where is he?" She demanded.</p><p>"I don't know." Hiram replied. Quinn growled and choked Hiram, throwing him against the wall.</p><p>"WHERE DID HE GO?!" She bellowed. Eventually, Hiram panted and responded.</p><p>"Mexico." He muttered, gasping for breath. "He's going after David Karofsky!"</p><p>Quinn let go of him in shock. She couldn't believe it.</p><p>"Hunting the head of a cartel. That's a suicide mission." She murmured.</p><p>"Listen to me, Detective." Hiram said. "Forget Finn Hudson. He's gone…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>David Karofsky strutted through the streets of Mexico, protected by 10 armed guards and feeling extremely safe. Nobody dared touch him for he was the most powerful man in Mexico. Suddenly, just as he sat in his armored car, his phone rang. It was an unknown number but he answered it.</p><p>"Who's this?" He spat.</p><p>"Well, hello, David." A familiar Texas drawl greeted him. "Look at you. Someone's been doing Pilates."</p><p>"Detective Hudson. I thought I might hear from you." David remarked, looking around nervously. Finn chuckled.</p><p>"Relax. If I wanted to blow you up, you'd be confetti by now. That's not my style. No. I want to look you in the eyes when I do it. That's why I'm calling to let you know."</p><p>"You will never leave Mexico alive." David growled.</p><p>"Yeah. That's the idea…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That night, at around midnight, Quinn tiptoed into Santana's room in the basement and she knocked on the door. After hearing a faint 'come in', Quinn stepped inside and saw Santana working at her desk.</p><p>"Hey." Santana smiled and then she saw the troubled expression on Quinn's face. "What's up?"</p><p>"There's something I gotta do." Quinn murmured quietly. Santana immediately knew what Quinn needed to do. Santana nodded.</p><p>"Bring him home…"</p>
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<a name="section0035"><h2>35. Baja, Mexico, Two weeks later…</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Baja, Mexico, Two weeks later…</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>David Karofsky's convoy parked in front of a hotel and the man himself got out of the car. Quinn watched through her binoculars and she spoke into her phone.</p><p>"I found him!" Quinn exclaimed.</p><p>"Who? Finn?" Santana asked.</p><p>"No, David Karofsky, the head of the cartel. If he's here, Finn is not far off. I followed his mistress to a hotel. He just showed up. Clearly the man's not happy at home."</p><p>"Hmm… that makes two of us. Q, you have been in Mexico for two weeks and still haven't found Finn. When are you coming home?"</p><p>"I'm sorry. If I'd known I was gonna be here this long, I would've brought more stuff. I don't even have my electric toothbrush. This is a disaster."</p><p>"Mm, yeah, I'm sure you're roughing it. I've seen the credit card bills. The Four Seasons, Quinn?"</p><p>"I'm tailing David Karofsky. The man has expensive taste. Trust me, this has not been a picnic for me."</p><p>Suddenly, Luke walked into the kitchen and over to Santana.</p><p>"Hey, is that mom? Does she have another family down there?" He asked.</p><p>"Oh, yeah, tell her to bring us something back from Mexico." Haley added. "Like tequila."</p><p>"Ha. Very funny." Santana remarked. "And this is not a vacation. She is there on legitimate police business, right, Quinn? The LAPD is aware that you're down there, right?"</p><p>"Yeah, well, technically I'm using vacation days. But I'm definitely gonna work that out when I get back down there."</p><p>"Quinn, Finn is a grown man. He can make his own decisions."</p><p>"Ha. If only that were true. You know how many messages I've left for him? Texts? Calls? Totally unresponsive. You think it would kill him just to reach out to me? See how I'm doing?"</p><p>Suddenly, the sound of machine gun fire rang through the air and Quinn spun around. It was coming from the penthouse floor of the hotel.</p><p>"Hey, San, I'm gonna have to call you back. I think I found Finn."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"I mean, I always knew you as a cold-blooded killer, David. But now I'm seeing you in a whole new light. I mean this right here is some kinky stuff." Finn remarked as he rummaged through David Karofsky's bag and pulled out various items. Finn had snuck into the hotel dressed in a flamboyant poncho and sombrero and had machine gunned his way through all of the guards on David Karofsky's private floor.</p><p>"Please." David begged. Finn pulled out a riding crop from the bag.</p><p>"You're gonna have to elaborate, David. Are you begging for your life or, uh, you want me to spank you?"</p><p>"Anything. I'll give you anything you want."</p><p>Finn knelt down and looked at the restrained man right in the eye.</p><p>"Don't you remember? You took away everything I ever wanted when you killed my wife." He growled.</p><p>The elevator doors swung open and Quinn stepped out onto the floor and her eyes widened… guards were lying across the floor, pools of blood seeping into the plush carpets. Quinn counted at least eight of them as she tiptoed towards the penthouse suite.</p><p>"You will never make it out of this hotel." David growled. "My men will kill you."</p><p>"That's the plan, David. See, you and I are going out together. Good news is, I'm dying with my pants on."</p><p>Finn then pulled out a gun and pointed it at David.</p><p>"Now, this is something that Rachel never had. It's the moment that you know, without a doubt, that you are gonna die."</p><p>"No, please." David whimpered. Suddenly, right when Finn was about to pull the trigger, the door was bashed open and Quinn ran inside. Finn grinned.</p><p>"Quinn!" He exclaimed, cheerfully.</p><p>"Finn, lower that weapon." Quinn warned, pointing to the gun Finn had trained on David.</p><p>"Lower it? Okay." Finn replied, lowering it so he was aiming at David's dick rather than his head. "Is that okay?"</p><p>"Come on, you know what I'm saying, man. This is not a joke. Come on, don't… don't, don't do this." Quinn pleaded.</p><p>"Hey, Quinn. You might want to, uh… step back. This is a .357. It's gonna get messy."</p><p>"Look, we can do this the right way." Quinn said.</p><p>"This feels like justice to me, Quinn." Finn murmured.</p><p>"Hey, Quinn, you pull that trigger and <em>your </em>life is over."</p><p>Finn looked her right in the eye.</p><p>"Yep." He replied, simply. "Might want to get out of here. They're gonna ask you why you didn't shoot me."</p><p>"I'm not leaving." Quinn snapped. "Okay? You want to do this? Then you know what? Fine. Both of our lives are over."</p><p>"So be it." Finn sighed.</p><p>"Finn, please don't. Please, please." Quinn begged.</p><p>"I'M GOING TO DO IT! GET OUT!"</p><p>"FINN, I LOVE YOU!" Quinn shouted. Finn almost dropped his gun in surprise.</p><p>"I'm sorry, did you just say you love me?" Finn asked, still reeling in shock.</p><p>"Yeah. I-I guess I got… I got caught up in the moment. So hey, maybe there's something that you… want to express to me in return."</p><p>Finn slowly shook his head.</p><p>"No, not really."</p><p>Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Come on, man. I just opened up and exposed myself emotionally to you, and… and you don't have nothing… nothing to say in return?"</p><p>"Yeah, I do actually." He murmured. "DUCK!"</p><p>Finn roughly shoved Quinn down and fired his gun over her head at the incoming guards. They had clearly heard about Finn's invasion of the hotel and were coming to David's age. Finn and Quinn then proceeded to pick off the guards one by one. As more and more guards started coming, Finn pulled out a grenade from his pocket and he pulled the pin. Quinn's eyes widened.</p><p>"You got a grenade?" She exclaimed. Finn shrugged and nodded.</p><p>"Well, yeah. I mean, I had it at the house. I was like when am I ever gonna get a chance to use it again?"</p><p>Finn then hurled the grenade at the incoming guards and successfully blew up all of the guards who were there. He then walked over to David and dragged him to his feet.</p><p>"Your time will come, amigo." Finn murmured. The three of them then tiptoed out of the hotel and somehow managed to make it alive.</p><p>"You know I had this all under control. You didn't have to come down here." Finn remarked as they threw David in the trunk of the car.</p><p>"No, <em>now </em>it's under control. We have David. We take him back to L.A, resume our lives, not a scratch on us. Now that's how I roll."</p><p>Suddenly, Finn slammed the trunk shut right on Quinn's thumb. She screamed in pain.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"State your name for the record." The Internal Affairs Agent asked. Captain Hummel was being forced to give a statement about the recent actions of Quinn and Finn. The LAPD had obviously heard about their recent adventures in Baja.</p><p>"Captain Kurt Hummel." Kurt replied.</p><p>"Captain Hummel, are you aware this panel has convened to discuss the international incident involving Detectives Fabray and Hudson?"</p><p>"Yes, I am aware."</p><p>"And you understand it would look very bad for the LAPD if we had two officers running around Mexico wreaking havoc on a mission for vigilante justice?"</p><p>"Absolutely. And I am prepared to cooperate fully."</p><p>"Good. What are Fabray and Hudson doing in Mexico?"</p><p>"My understanding is… fishing." Kurt replied.</p><p>"Fishing?"</p><p>"Yes, fishing. They really like spending time together. Sometimes you-you pair people up and they just… they click."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn groaned in pain as she was wheeled into the hospital.</p><p>"We're wasting time, Q. We have someone that we need to be taking to jail." He remarked.</p><p>"AFTER!" Quinn snapped. "After we reattach my finger!"</p><p>Suddenly, Finn's phone started ringing and he took it out. His heart ran cold as he showed Quinn the number. It was Santana.</p><p>"OK, now she's calling my phone, all right? Just let me talk…"</p><p>"NO! I need time to come up with a plausible story for this." Quinn yelled, pointing at her disattached thumb.</p><p>"I've got loads of plausible stories!" Finn exclaimed.</p><p>"Just put the phone away! Haven't you done enough?" She snapped.</p><p>She started to get wheeled away by a nurse but Finn ran after her, a slushie glass full of ice in his hand.</p><p>"You're forgetting something?" Finn remarked. Quinn took the slushie glass from him and she looked at the finger in the glass and she almost threw up.</p><p>"Ew… it' s pointing right at me. Oh, I need something for the pain!" She exclaimed.</p><p>"Don't worry. We'll take care of you." The nurse said, kindly.</p><p>"I need morphine." Quinn cried.</p><p>"Sure you don't want me to come back there and hold your good hand?" Finn smirked.</p><p>"NO! Keep him away from me!" She cried.</p><p>"Family only, sir." The nurse said. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"Well, she did tell me that she loved me." Finn remarked.</p><p>"I didn't mean it, Finn. It was a distraction tactic, you hear me?! I didn't mean it!"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"When did you know you were dealing with loose cannons." The IA agent asked. Kurt had to laugh at that question.</p><p>"Well, I mean, there was the incident at the Grand Prix. And then they blew up the fireworks factory. And the pharmaceutical company. Wait, no, they just jumped out of the window of the pharma. They shot the bomb in mid air. What was the question again?"</p><p>Suddenly, Tina walked into the room.</p><p>"Sorry to interrupt. It's urgent." She said. She then passed Kurt a post-it note that read one simple sentence… 'We've Got Karofsky!'</p><p>"Is this for real?" Kurt asked, delighted.</p><p>"I think so." Tina replied. Kurt then turned to the IA agents.</p><p>"Will you excuse me?" He asked. "We have some excellent news, and I feel like you're about to learn what I already know: that Fabray and Hudson are consummate professionals."</p><p>Kurt walked out of the room and saw Quinn and Finn standing in the bullpen. He rushed over to them.</p><p>"Great! You're back! I was worried!"</p><p>"Kurt!" Quinn exclaimed in an extremely high-pitched voice. "Come here, Captain!"</p><p>"Morphine." Finn explained to an extremely confused Kurt.</p><p>"Why is she on morphine?" Kurt asked, nervously.</p><p>"Had her finger reattached."</p><p>"What the hell happened in Mex…? You know what? I don't want to know. But you do have Karofsky, right?"</p><p>"Of course we have Karofsky." Quinn drawled. "We're industry professionals."</p><p>"Well, that's a bit of a stretch." Finn laughed.</p><p>"Great, where is he?" Kurt asked. The three of them walked down to the car park and they popped the trunk open. Kurt's eyes widened.</p><p>"What did you guys do?" He snapped. Raising their eyebrows, Finn and Quinn walked over to the trunk of the car and their hearts dropped.</p><p>"We didn't do that, right?" Quinn asked. David Karofsky was indeed in the trunk, but there was one difference to when they threw him in: there was a bullet hole in the center of his head. Finn gritted his teeth and clenched his jaw.</p><p>"No, Quinn, we didn't…"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0036"><h2>36. Chapter 36</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>30 minutes later…</strong>
</p><p>"You expect us to believe that you have no idea how David Karofsky ended up dead in yout trunk?" The I.A Agent asked Finn and Quinn.</p><p>"That's not what I said." Finn groaned in annoyance. "I said I'm not a forensic scientist, but my guess would be the bullet to the head scrambled his brains."</p><p>"Who would have the motive to kill David Karofsky?" The I.A agent asked. Finn laughed.</p><p>"Uh, I don't know. He's the head of one of the biggest cartels in Mexico, so I'm guessing it's a long list." Finn remarked.</p><p>"Would you put yourself on that list?" She asked. Finn didn't answer and the lady raised an eyebrow. "Did you not go down to Mexico with the intent to kill Mr. Karofsky."</p><p>"I think you're overstating that." Quinn chuckled. "Uh he went… <em>we </em>went down there to arrest David Karofsky, which we did successfully."</p><p>"Here's a voice mail lifted from David's phone." The agent said and he clicked the play button. Finn's voice filled the room.</p><p>"David!" Finn exclaimed in the voicemail. "Hola, amigo. You know, when I woke up this morning and I thought the sun is shining, what a great day to put a bullet in your head. Right between your eyes."</p><p>Quinn glared at Finn and Finn just shrugged and smirked faintly. She sighed and turned to the IA agents.</p><p>"Don't lump me in there with him." She told them. "I was down there as the voice of reason."</p><p>"It's true. The only reason I did not kill David was because she told me she loved me." Finn added.</p><p>"I'd like that stricken from the record." Quinn snapped.</p><p>"This isn't a trial." The I.A agents stated, rolling their eyes.</p><p>"Okay, well, I want my lawyer present because my brain is still a little foggy. It's a residual effect of pain medication. So I am not responsible for the things I might've said."</p><p>"Well, I'm an open book. So ask away!" Finn exclaimed, cheerfully.</p><p>"Why were you hunting David Karofsky, Detective Hudson?" One of them asked.</p><p>"Because he killed my wife. Next question."</p><p>The three I.A agents looked at each other. Finn was really not looking too good and they all knew it.</p><p>"Effective immediately, you're both on administrative leave. We'll need your badges and guns. Unless otherwise notified, you are not to go anywhere near this case…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn and Quinn stormed out of the precinct moments later and Quinn ran over to Finn.</p><p>"Wait a minute, what's the matter with you, man? You got us suspended!" Quinn spat angrily.</p><p>"I don't know why you're upset, I just told the truth. Plus, bonus vacation days!"</p><p>"Yeah, well, you know, I was thinking, while I was doped up, I might've told the nurse that David was in the trunk. I say we start with her."</p><p>"Uh, we're on leave, madam." Finn stated. Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Yeah, but they always say that and then we never listen. It's kind of our move." She replied.</p><p>"Not anymore. I am done."</p><p>Quinn stopped walking.</p><p>"Woah, woah, woah. What do you mean, you're done? You want to find out who killed David?"</p><p>"I mean, look, obviously, it should have been me. But I'll tell you what: you find him and I'll buy him a beer."</p><p>Finn then started walking away but Quinn wasn't done yet. She ran after him.</p><p>"So that's it? No more being a cop? What are… what are you gonna do? You're gonna go back to your trailer and drink yourself into oblivion?"</p><p>"That, Lucy Quinn Fabray, is the best idea you've had all day!" Finn exclaimed and then he walked away.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn slowly walked into her house for the first time in three weeks, prepared to face the anger of her entire family. But what greeted her was an extremely weird sight. There were random people all over her house, all holding red solo cups. Quinn stormed over to the speaker which was blasting music and she unplugged the phone from it. Unfortunately, that didn't do anything.</p><p>"The party is over! Over!" She shouted. Nobody heard her though. Haley turned around and saw her.</p><p>"Mom, it's wireless." She laughed. She then walked over and gave her mom a hug. Luke walked over moments later.</p><p>"Hey, mom, welcome home!" He exclaimed.</p><p>"Don't 'welcome home, mom' me. What's going on here?" Quinn snapped. "I leave town for a couple of days and you guys decided to throw an unsupervised party? Oh, wait till Santana finds out about this!"</p><p>"Quinn!" Santana exclaimed, cheerfully, walking into the room, a plate of barbequed food in her arms. "Oh my god! Welcome back!"</p><p>"San, wh-what is all this?"</p><p>"Well, the kids wanted to throw a post-graduation party and I'd rather them throw it here, where I can see them.</p><p>"Who is manning my barbeque?!" Quinn exclaimed. Luke smirked at her and winked. "You? You do not have a license to operate her. That is not a toy."</p><p>"I'm going to college in a few weeks, mom. I can manage a grill."</p><p>"You picked a school without me?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"Oh, yeah. Claremont."</p><p>Quinn looked at Santana, incredulously.</p><p>"San, isn't that a decision that we should make together as a family? Why wasn't I consulted?"</p><p>"Really? I tried calling and calling you, Quinn. One time you were at a mariachi bar, one time you were at a spa. And the oth… you know what? When you went to Mexico, I supported you; I didn't ask any questions. And I'm asking you to do the same for me now, okay?"</p><p>"You're right." Quinn sighed. "Maybe I came in a little hot. You know, it was a long day. I'm just happy to see my family… and what the hell is that?" Quinn shouted, pointing to right under Haley's crop top, where a small ring was pierced.</p><p>"Oh, it's a belly button ring. Cool right?" Haley smiled.</p><p>"No, not cool!" Quinn spat. "The only girls who wear belly button rings are the ones who get paid to show it!"</p><p>"Mom!" Haley exclaimed in horror.</p><p>"Quinn!" Santana shouted. "That is not okay."</p><p>"Okay, can you guys please take it upstairs. This is social suicide."</p><p>"I know what's wrong." Quinn snapped. "You're just mad because I went to Mexico for a couple of weeks."</p><p>"I'm mad because you came back acting like a horse's ass." Santana responded. She then noticed the bandages on Finn's finger. "Quinn, what is that?"</p><p>"Oh, it's nothing." Quinn stammered in reply. "I-I lost a piece of my finger. They found it, put it back, everything is fine."</p><p>Santana took deep breaths to control her temper.</p><p>"And you didn't think to call me when a PART OF YOUR BODY GOES MISSING?!"</p><p>"Can we start over?" Quinn asked.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn poured himself a glass of scotch and he sat down on his trailer table. He was then greeted by the side of his open David Karofsky file. As he looked at the man's face, he felt a surge of anger that he wasn't the one that pulled the trigger. He sighed. Nothing he could do now anyways. Finn dumped the file in the garbage and he took a swig of alcohol. Suddenly, there was a knock on his trailer door.</p><p>"Are you decent?!" He heard Doctor Pillsbury call.</p><p>"Nope." Finn replied. Dr. Pillsbury rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Let me rephrase… do you have pants on?"</p><p>"Yes." Finn sighed. She then opened the door and stepped inside.</p><p>"Wow." She remarked as she looked around his trailer for the first time. "This is not as bad as I expected."</p><p>"You must have extremely low expectations." Finn laughed.</p><p>"I came by to check on you." She said. "I'm not sure if you remember, but you sent me this note before you left."</p><p>"That is a thank you note." Finn explained. Dr. Pillsbury smiled faintly.</p><p>"Not to get all shrink on you but it read to me like a suicide note. So you're done, huh? No more being a cop."</p><p>"Well, you know, they accused me of killing David Karofsky, if you can believe that."</p><p>"But you didn't kill him. How do you feel about that?"</p><p>Finn sighed.</p><p>"Well, I think the world's a better place without him in it so I'll take one for the team." Finn replied.</p><p>"What about your partner?" She asked. "She followed you to Mexico to save your life. Sounds like she may have ruined her career to do it."</p><p>"Well, I didn't ask for her help, so… that's on her."</p><p>"You didn't have to." Dr. Pillsbury remarked. "That's what it means to care about someone. She wanted you alive more than you did. Well… I for one am glad you're back. The world's a better place with you in it."</p><p>With that, she walked out of the trailer and into the night.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>The following evening, Quinn walked into the hospital she had gone to by the U.S/Mexico border to question the nurse who had treated her. The door was locked when she tried to walk in but the nurse saw her and her eyes widened.</p><p>"Hi. I was in here earlier with a missing finger!" She exclaimed.</p><p>"I know who you are, we're closed." She stammered as she flipped the switch to a secret alarm that called the police. "You need to leave."</p><p>"It's okay, I'm a cop." She said. "I need to know if I said anything on that medication, anything unusual."</p><p>"You kidnapped David Karofsky and then you killed him. I saw the news! I already hit the alarm. Cops are on their way." She exclaimed. "Real cops."</p><p>"Honey, I <em>am </em>a real cop."</p><p>"Let me see your badge then." She snapped. Suddenly, Quinn heard the brakes of a car squeaking outside. She turned around to see two SUVs full of cartel men readying their machine guns.</p><p>"Denise. Is that your name? Okay, Denise, there are some very bad men out there with automatic weapons coming to kill you." Quinn shouted. Denise's face filled with confusion.</p><p>"Why?" She gasped.</p><p>"Wh-Who did you tell about David?" Quinn yelled.</p><p>"I called my brother, he's a Border Patrol agent."</p><p>"Okay. Open this door. OPEN THE DOOR!" Quinn shouted. Terrified, Denise quickly unlocked the door and let Quinn in. Quinn quickly shut off all lights in the hospital and opened a small storage cupboard.</p><p>"I need you to stay in here until I return, got it?" Quinn spat. Denise nodded and stepped inside. "Wait, I need a weapon. Do you have anything? Uh, uh… nurse… scalpel."</p><p>Denise quickly handed her the tool and Quinn smirked.</p><p>"I always wanted to say that." She grinned. "Okay, I'll be right back. Don't worry. Industry professional."</p><p>With that, Quinn slammed the door shut tiptoed through the hospital to take cover and she prepared to take out the men one by one. She listened silently as the men smashed through the glass doors and entered the building. Quinn waited until they split up and she prowled silently until she approached one of them. She jumped out of her hiding spot and stabbed him in the neck, causing him to cry out and collapse on the ground. Suddenly, five guns cocked and trained on her.</p><p>"HANDS UP!" One of them shouted in a thick, Hispanic accent. Quinn slowly raised her hands but before they were even fully up, five gunshots rang through the air, burying into the temples of the five gunmen. It was incredible accuracy from the shooter… Navy SEAL accuracy. Quinn smiled and let out a sigh of relief when she realised who had made the shots. She had no idea where he was, but given the distance the bullets travelled, he was probably outside the hospital building. Sure enough, Finn called to her from the entrance of the hospital.</p><p>"Hey, Q, you dead in there?" He shouted.</p><p>"Yes!" She replied.</p><p>"Lucky bastard." Finn muttered before walking into the hospital to meet her.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Half an hour later, the police had made it and Denise had finally left her hiding spot in the cupboard. She sat in one of the stationary ambulances, a shock blanket draped around her shoulders, and Quinn walked over to her.</p><p>"Who were those men?" Denise stammered.</p><p>"Probably members of David Karofsky's cartel." She replied. "Now, you said you told your brother we had Tito in the trunk?"</p><p>"Yeah. Gordon works for Border Patrol. I didn't know you guys were cops. I figured he'd know what to do."</p><p>Quinn nodded and took out her phone. She called Tina.</p><p>"Hey, Tina." She said. She could practically hear Tina smiling.</p><p>"Quinn? Thank God. Do you have any idea how dead this place is without you and Finn?"</p><p>"Listen, for a concerned citizen, could you put out a BOLO for one Gordon Barnes, born 7/30/79."</p><p>"Sure. Who is he?" Tina asked, looking at a picture of him.</p><p>"A person of interest in the David Karofsky killing. Since we're on suspension, we have to do this under the radar."</p><p>Suddenly, Tina felt a knock on the edge of her desk. She looked up and her eyes widened.</p><p>"Got him." Tina said.</p><p>"You looked him up?" Quinn asked.</p><p>"No, he's standing right in front of me." Tina murmured. "Sir, can I help you?" She asked.</p><p>"Yeah." Gordon replied, walking over to her. "I'm here to confess. I killed David Karofsky…"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0037"><h2>37. Chapter 37</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"I've been a border agent for 15 years. I had a front row seat to the death, carnage, lives ruined by drug lords like Karofsky. If he went to trial, he would've walked. I knew what I had to do."</p><p>Kurt stopped the recording of Gordon's confession and Quinn thought about what she had just watched.</p><p>"He did it!" She exclaimed. "Rewind that back, that's a confession."</p><p>"I don't need to rewind it. I've watched it a dozen times." He replied. "I'll present this to the IA panel and hopefully, you'll have your job back by tomorrow."</p><p>Quinn smiled and nodded.</p><p>"Okay. Got my finger back, got my job back. Now I got to get my family back so I can forget this nightmare ever happened."</p><p>"What about your partner?" Kurt asked. "Before you left, you said you wanted a new one. Do you?"</p><p>"The answer to that will always be yes." Quinn laughed. "But it's not up to me. He says he's walking away."</p><p>"You believe him?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Finn strutted into the interrogation room later that afternoon, where Gordon Barnes was still sitting.</p><p>"Look, any questions you got, I already answered. People have been grilling me all day." Gordon snapped, tiredly. Finn rolled his eyes and walked over to the room's security camera and pulled out the wire to disconnect it.</p><p>"Just one." Finn stated. "What was it like to kill David Karofsky?"</p><p>Gordon's eyes furrowed in confusion.</p><p>"You mean, you want to know how it went down?" He asked. "I told them already."</p><p>"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no." Finn murmured. "How did it feel? Look, I'm asking because I wanted to be the guy. You know, look into his eyes, hear his last breath. And I had this idea in my mind of how it would feel. And thanks to you, I'm never gonna know for sure, so if you could indulge me."</p><p>"Oh, well, I don't know. It happened pretty quick."</p><p>Finn sighed.</p><p>"All right, well, you got to give me more than that. I mean… was it like some inner peace, like a weight lifted? I don't know. Coldness? Come on, lunatic to lunatic."</p><p>"I felt like David needed to die and so he did." Gordon replied. Finn rapped his knuckles on the table, frustrated.</p><p>"You know, I would've hoped David's killer would've been a little more verbal, but all right. Good luck in prison." Finn sighed and he walked out of the room.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"You're looking at a deeply apologetic woman." Quinn said to her family that night as they sat at the dinner table. "Now, I scoured the city to find everybody's favorite meal, every teriyaki burger, soup dumpling, sashimi. It's just a small token of the appreciation I have for this beautiful family that I love."</p><p>"Hmm, so you think getting some sushi is gonna make up for your behaviour?" Santana remarked.</p><p>"No, no. This is just the beginning of what will be a-a… a month long grovel." Quinn stammered. "Deal?"</p><p>"Quinn. Next time you come back after being away, we like <em>this </em>version of you." Santana laughed. "Deal?"</p><p>"Absolutely." Quinn replied.</p><p>"Oh, wait, I have a demand!" Luke chimed in. Quinn glared at him.</p><p>"Hey, don't you press your…" Quinn's voice trailed off when she saw Santana's facial expression. "What is it, son?"</p><p>"I would like for you to come with me to see Claremont College this weekend." Luke replied. Quinn smiled at him.</p><p>"Book it." She replied. "And Haley… I respect the fact that it is your body and if you want to bejewel your, um… navel region, um… I, uh… I will support that."</p><p>"Thank you, mom. Does that mean I can get a tattoo?"</p><p>"Too far, Haley. Too far!" Santana laughed, giggling at Quinn's livid face.</p><p>"Look, I just want things to go back to the way things were before I left." Quinn remarked. As soon as she had uttered those words, there was a loud pounding on the door and Santana chuckled.</p><p>"Looks like you got your wish." She remarked as she stood up to answer the door.</p><p>"Finn!" Santana exclaimed as she opened the door. "Come here!"</p><p>Finn gave her a hug.</p><p>"How are you, Santana."</p><p>"Welcome back." She murmured.</p><p>"I hope I'm not intruding." He said.</p><p>"Not at all! Quinn was just redoing her apology after the first one crash and burned."</p><p>"Sounds about right." Finn chuckled. "So, uh, how's the job going?"</p><p>Santana raised an eyebrow in shock and her jaw dropped.</p><p>"Wait, um, he just asked me about <em>my </em>life. Very thoughtful." Santana remarked, glaring jokingly at Quinn.</p><p>"Ooh, nice belly button ring." Finn remarked, pointing to the ring on Haley's stomach.</p><p>"Thanks." Haley replied. "I want to get a tattoo."</p><p>"I've got a great guy down on Sunset. Let me know when you're ready."</p><p>"Ah, out, out, out, out, out!" Quinn exclaimed. She roughly shoved him out the door and followed him out to the front porch. "Hey, now is not a good time. If you got something to say to me, wait till tomorrow, okay? Or, hey, why don't you pick up the phone like a normal person?"</p><p>"Sure thing. I'll see you tomorrow." Finn said, walking away. Quinn sighed and ran after him.</p><p>"Hey, wait, wait, wait. Since you're here, what?"</p><p>"Well, I had a conversation with one Gordon Barnes and, uh… I don't think he did it."</p><p>Quinn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"And what is it that makes you think he didn't do it, Finn? Did he recant?"</p><p>Finn shook his head.</p><p>"No. I looked at his face." Finn stated. Quinn sighed and rolled her eyes.</p><p>"His face?"</p><p>"That's not the face of a man who wanted to kill Dave Karofsky." Finn snapped. He then pointed at his own face. "This. This is the face of a man who wants to kill Dave Karofsky."</p><p>"And what am I supposed to do with that, Finn? Huh? If he didn't do it, I'm still suspended."</p><p>"Well, if I was your partner, I'd tell you to go find the real killer. If I was your friend… I'd tell you to go back inside and be with your family."</p><p>"Well, are you?" She asked.</p><p>"Your partner?" Finn asked.</p><p>"No. My friend." She replied. Finn sighed and looked her in the eye.</p><p>"I probably wouldn't be here if I wasn't."</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"This is what we in the robbery/homicide business call an airtight case." Kurt announced to the IA agents. "Signed confession. Mexico's largest cartel is now leaderless. Now, yes, Hudson and Fabray should be reinstated, but I'm thinking bigger. I'm thinking of commendation."</p><p>The IA Agents sighed and passed Kurt a file. He opened it to see the face of a Latino man. Kurt looked at it and then back at them, questioningly.</p><p>"Raul Mendez." One of the agents said. "David's second in command and attack dog. Within hours of David's death, he'd assumed control. So, the Karofsky Cartel is business as usual."</p><p>"Hmm." Kurt said, taken aback. "Why don't we start with their reinstatement and go from there?"</p><p>Suddenly, there was a knock on the door and Tina walked in. Just like last time, she handed Kurt a post-it note however this time, Kurt was less than pleased. The note read… 'Barnes didn't do it!' He groaned and left the room with Tina and they walked into his office, where Quinn was standing.</p><p>"What do you mean he didn't do it?" Kurt snapped. Quinn sighed.</p><p>"Finn said he looked Barnes in the eyes and he didn't do it."</p><p>"The eyes? I was <em>so </em>close to getting you two reinstated. Now you want me to go back in there and tell them we don't even have a suspect?"</p><p>"Technically speaking, Quinn and Finn <em>are </em>the suspects." Tina smirked. Quinn glared at her.</p><p>"I don't want to say it again: we did not kill David Karofsky."</p><p>"Honestly, at this point, it'd be easier if you had." Kurt sighed.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That afternoon, Quinn and Finn had travelled to Barnes' prison to question him but they were getting nowhere.</p><p>"We've been over it a hundred times!" Barnes snapped as Finn asked him the same questions yet again.</p><p>"I know. I know. I know. Just-just tell her what you told me." Finn asked. Barnes sighed.</p><p>"I picked the trunk lock. I shot David. I walked away."</p><p>"I got chills." Quinn laughed. "It's as if I was there."</p><p>"One shot." Finn murmured. "Total pro. I'd have hosed his ass down, Sonny Corleone style. Because I'm a nervous guy. I wouldn't have been able to control myself."</p><p>"Yeah, well, one shot was plenty." Barnes snapped. Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Huh. You know, funny… we found <em>two </em>bullet holes in David's skull." Finn remarked. Fear flitted in Barnes eyes for a brief moment.</p><p>"I have a theory." Quinn announced, jokingly. "May I pitch?"</p><p>"Oh, please." Finn responded. "Go right ahead."</p><p>"Well, what if another killer showed up after you left, and they shot David in the exact same spot with the exact same caliber bullet and then he leaves."</p><p>"I… mayb-maybe I shot twice." Barnes stammered. "I don't, I don't remember. It happened so fast."</p><p>"See, I don't buy that. Right?" Finn remarked. "If I killed David Karofsky, I'd have played it over and over and over in my head like my favourite country ballad."</p><p>"I KILLED DAVID KAROFSKY!" He shouted, slightly desperately now.</p><p>"Not a bad name for your country song." Quinn joked. Finn laughed.</p><p>"Oh yeah, how's this, how's this? <em>I shot Dave Karofsky, Shot him in the head. I don't know how many times, but I know that he's dead!</em>"</p><p>"Yeah, that's great, that's great!" Quinn giggled.</p><p>"I gotta write this down!" Finn exclaimed. "But first, let's put through the paperwork and get him released. That'll be…"</p><p>"Wait." Barnes murmured. He took a deep, shaky breath. "If I admit I'm innocent, will you promise not to let me out?"</p><p>Finn raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Now this is a story I'd like to hear." He remarked, sitting down.</p><p>"I know Tito's number two, Raul Mendez." Barnes murmured. "Sometimes I'd take some cash from him at the border, let a truck through. It was harmless stuff. When my sister called me to tell me that David's body was in the trunk of a car this side of the border, I figured I could get on Raul's good side. But Raul didn't want him back. Raul killed Tito. And then he went after my sister and he told me that if I didn't confess, he was gonna kill her, too."</p><p>"So, what, you go to jail and he pinky swears that he's not gonna kill your sister? You're a very trusting man." Quinn stated.</p><p>"I have an insurance policy. Proof. Proof that he did it. I recorded the phone call with Raul…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"So that's your plan? You're just gonna blow up Raul?" Quinn asked incredulously. Finn was in the weapons storage room, loading up on machine guns, grenades and anything he could get his hands on.</p><p>"Yup." Finn replied. "Since you tossed my last grenade back in Mexico, I gotta stock up. Hey, Monty, you got any RPGs? Finn shouted to the front desk officer in the armoury.</p><p>"For you or Fabray?" Monty asked.</p><p>"You honestly think I'd trust this man with a rocket launcher?" Finn laughed.</p><p>"Third aisle, third shelf, confiscated from a meth dealer in Hawthorne." Monty chuckled.</p><p>"My man!" Finn exclaimed.</p><p>"So, you're going down to Mexico and you're gonna start a war?"</p><p>"No, I'm gonna finish one." Finn growled. He picked up the rocket launcher and sighed. "This is not an RPG. It's an M-72." He grumbled. Quinn rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Okay, let's say you go down there and you're successful in this little suicide mission. You take Raul out. Someone else is just gonna step up and take his place."</p><p>"Then I'll take him out." Finn remarked.</p><p>"You can't because you just went on a <em>suicide </em>mission, or do you not understand the meaning of those words?"</p><p>"That's a really good point. Okay. Then you'll have to kill him, deal? Pinky swear?"</p><p>Quinn sighed and rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Look, Finn, the only way to do this is to take out the entire cartel." Quinn stated.</p><p>"Oh, what a great idea. Why didn't I think of that?" Finn snapped, getting slightly annoyed now.</p><p>"I'm serious. We take out the whole operation, but we do it the right way."</p><p>"And how do you plan on doing that, Quinn?"</p><p>"Well, we're gonna need a lot more grenades…"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0038"><h2>38. Chapter 38</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next afternoon was the memorial service of David Karofsky in Mexico and all of the cartel top members were going to be there, including Raul Mendes, his number two. The memorial was in full swing in a church at around noon, and that was when Finn strided into the cathedral, shattering the silence that was previously occupying the vast room. Every cartel eye turned to him.</p><p>"I'm sorry. Am I late?" Finn remarked as he strutted inside. He heard the cock of at least ten guns and they all trained on him. He didn't even flinch though. "I'm late, aren't I? I knew it. In fairness, though, there's like 20 churches in this town, first of all, so you can see how one can get confused."</p><p>As Finn pranced up the aisle to the front of the room, all of the guns were pointed straight at him and he raised his hands up.</p><p>"Woah, woah, woah, woah, woah. Guys, look, let's not lose our heads here. I mean, unless you <em>have </em>to shoot, in which case then, we all will. Lose our heads, that is."</p><p>Finn took off his jacket, revealing the grenade belt strapped to his chest. Concerned whispering echoed around the room from not only the cartel members, but their spouses too.</p><p>"Okay, I'm gonna use this opportunity, uh, for all those not involved in the cartel game to take their leave." He announced. All of the women and children in the room took the chance to run out of the doors, leaving Finn with just twenty of the highest ranking officials in the whole cartel. "First, I'd like to say a few words…" Finn stated, placing a hand on David's closed casket. "Oh… to the man, the murderer, drug lord, all-round human filth. Yes, David Karofsky killed a lot of people… destroyed many families. Mine included. I'll never forget you for that. Truth be told, I wanted to be the one who pulled the trigger. But someone beat me to it. And that someone is here today…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"San, I'd love to talk but I can't right now." Quinn whispered into her phone. She was in the electrical room of the church and was connecting her phone to the speaker system to play Raul's message to the entire cartel.</p><p>"Quinn, I got your message. So you're in Mexico with Finn again?" Santana snapped.</p><p>"Yes. I am at David Karofsky's funeral. And from now on, no more unilateral decisions. I'm gonna tell you everything."</p><p>Suddenly, Quinn heard the cock of a pistol behind her.</p><p>"And in the spirit of sharing, someone's here to kill me right now. I gotta go. I love you."</p><p>"Wait, WHAT?!" Santana shouted but she was cut off. Quinn hung up the phone and slowly faced the man. She lunged at him before he could shoot, throwing him into the wall.</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>"Ladies and Gentlemen, put your hands together for Raul!" Finn exclaimed. "Come on, Raul, stand up. Take a bow. All right!"</p><p>Raul stood up and faced his fellow cartel men.</p><p>"These are lies!" Raul shouted in Spanish. "This Gringo Loco would say anything! As a matter of fact, this is the one that kidnapped David."</p><p>"My-my spanish is a little rusty. Um, it sounds like you're denying all this. Raul, take credit. Believe me, I would have loved to have been the one to do it."</p><p>Raul placed a gun to Finn's forehead.</p><p>"Maybe I should just kill you right now." He growled.</p><p>"That's a really good idea." Finn whispered. "Why don't you do it like you did David? Bang-bang. Two shots to the head. Come on, let's go. WHOO! Let's do it, Raul! Together!"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Quinn smashed a glass over the cartel man's head and she scrambled away. She then tackled him and threw him into a wall. She grabbed a loose wire from the ground and began to twist and squeeze around the man's neck…</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Raul chuckled as Finn giggled maniacally with the gun to his head.</p><p>"You see these people?" Raul snapped, pointing to the 20 cartel officers. "They would die for me! Because I am their <em>patrón.</em> They will never believe you."</p><p>"Oh, no, I never expected them to believe me. That would be silly. They can hear it directly from you." Finn remarked. "HEY Q, PLAY THAT TAPE!"</p><p>No response. Finn raised an eyebrow. Maybe there were connection issues or something. He had no idea what was going on in the room.</p><p>"Whenever you're ready, Q, go for it!" He exclaimed. Still nothing. Finn sighed. "We seem to be experiencing some technical difficulties. Let me summarize what he said to the border patrol agent…"</p><p>Finn cleared his throat and put on a really rough hispanic accent, imitating Raul.</p><p>"You're gonna tell everybody that you're the one that killed Dave, and…"</p><p>Suddenly, the speakers turned on and Raul's voice continued the sentence, echoing across the vast cathedral.</p><p>"...And if anyone finds out that it was me, I'll kill your sister, and I'll make you watch."</p><p>Every gun in the room switched from pointing at Finn to pointing at Raul and Raul started trembling like a mouse.</p><p>"I can never get the tone right. It sounds so much better coming from him." Finn remarked, giggling playfully. "Ooh, it seems as if the tides have turned, my dear Raul."</p><p>Suddenly, Raul lunged at him, grabbed one of the grenades from his belt and tossed it down the aisle. The cartel men dived to cover from the massive exp… wait, where was the explosion. The grenade just laid there, motionless.</p><p>"Damn. LAPD cutbacks." Finn grumbled. That's when the bullets started flying…</p><p>Finn grabbed Raul and the two of them dived over a table, pulling it down for cover.</p><p>"You gotta get me out, man!" Raul begged. "I'll talk. I'll give you names, shipping routes, anything you want."</p><p>"I don't know, sounds like a lot of paperwork." Finn commented.</p><p>"Keep me alive, and I will give you everything you need to take out the cartel."</p><p>Finn sighed.</p><p>"You drive a hard bargain, but all right."</p><p>Finn and Raul sprinted towards the exit of the cathedral, keeping low to dodge the bullets and Finn firing shots back. The two of them jumped out of a cathedral window and that's when Quinn pulled up right next to them, already in her car. The two men sprinted over and dived into the car. As soon as they were in, Quinn started speeding away. She quickly dialed her phone and called Santana.</p><p>"Quinn." Santana shouted, worriedly.</p><p>"Hey, S. Yeah, it's me again. No, we fine. We got our man and we're heading back home."</p><p>Meanwhile, Finn leaned out of the window, the M-72 rocket launcher in his hand. He carefully aimed at the cathedral and pulled the trigger, causing the entire building to explode in a massive fireball of destruction.</p><p>"Quinn, what was that?" Santana shouted into the phone. She faintly heard the explosion - understandable given how deafening it was.</p><p>"Oh, that's nothing! We're good! Finn just shot off a rocket launcher!" Quinn exclaimed. Santana sighed and put her head in her hands.</p><p>"Okay, Q, I think that's enough sharing."</p><p>Quinn hung up the phone and Finn spun around to face Raul.</p><p>"So, Raul, what did it feel like to kill Tito Flores?"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>Kurt walked into his office, where Finn and Quinn were standing, a file in his hands.</p><p>"Erratic. Unprofessional. Capricious. Just a few of the descriptors the police commission used in their report." He remarked.</p><p>"What about unhinged?" Quinn suggested, smirking at him. "Loose cannons?"</p><p>"Ooh, yeah, we get that one a lot!" Finn exclaimed. "Although... We did solve the murder."</p><p>"And Raul's testimony will take down most of the cartel's management structure." Quinn added. "And that with barely a scratch."</p><p>"Oh, no, you misunderstood!" Kurt snapped. "That was their description of me. See, I spent so much time covering for you two, they thought <em>I </em>was the unstable one. No, you… you idiots get a pass. The police commission has officially approved your reinstatement."</p><p>Kurt put down two guns and two badges on his table and Quinn immediately took hers back gratefully. Finn, however, was a little bit hesitant. Kurt looked him in the eye.</p><p>"That is, if you want it…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That afternoon, Finn walked into the elevator and saw that it was already occupied with one person: Dr. Pillsbury. She nodded at him.</p><p>"I heard you guys blew up the cartel." She remarked. Finn shrugged.</p><p>"All in a day's work." He replied. Dr. Pillsbury spied a police badge clipped against Finn's side and she smiled widely.</p><p>"I see you're wearing your badge again."</p><p>"Well, you know, it's really, uh… more of a fashion statement, you know." Finn joked.</p><p>"Well, I'm glad you're back." Dr. Pillsbury said. "I like having you around."</p><p>"Well, I mean, you know, This isn't it, right? We can, uh… meet in the break room. Cheese puffs on me."</p><p>"I was thinking tomorrow, my office, 8 am. IA's order. Back on the force means back on the couch, Finn."</p><p>"Yeah, but David's dead, so I mean, I'm cured."</p><p>Dr. Pillsbury looked at him and raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"If you really believe that, you are crazier than I thought…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That afternoon, Finn sat in his trailer, pondering about the events of the past couple of days. For some reason, there was one memory that he couldn't get out of his head: Quinn telling him that she loved him. He was torn: his brain was telling him that he could never love again after Rachel, but his heart strongly disagreed. Eventually, Finn knew what he had to do…</p><p>Half an hour later, Finn parked his car in front of the most gorgeous cemetery in L.A. It was a meadow, trees shedding auburn leaves onto the soft, crunchy ground. Finn walked across the graveyard and over to one of the headstones at the corner of the field. He read the name: Rachel Berry-Hudson. He sighed and sat next to it and began to talk…</p><p>"I know I should have come by sooner." Finn murmured. "I, uh… you wouldn't have been proud of the man that I've become and I guess I just didn't want you to see me that way. I mean, truth be told, I thought I was gonna be with you by now. You know, that was the plan. But I guess nothing turned out like we planned, did it?"</p><p>Finn cleared his throat and continued…</p><p>"So, I've got this new partner. Well, she's not new, but new to you. And don't get jealous, but she told me the other day that she loves me. The worst part… she won't let me die. So… you'd love her."</p><p>Finn knelt down and started to dig a small, shallow hole in the ground right above her grave. Taking a deep breath, Finn slowly slipped his gold wedding band off his finger and he placed it in the ground, burying it right on top of his deceased wife.</p><p>"I'm never gonna stop missing you. I love you…"</p><p>HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH</p><p>That night, Finn knocked on the door of a house he had been to hundreds of times. He had to do possibly the hardest thing he had done in years. The door opened moments later and Quinn stepped outside onto the front porch. Her face lit up when she saw him and she gave him a hug.</p><p>"Finn!" She exclaimed. "I heard that you took your job back!"</p><p>"Yeah, plenty of bad guys are still left on the street. I can't stop just because the one that directly affected me is gone." Finn replied.</p><p>"Well, for what it's worth, I'm really happy you're back. And, hey, I told Kurt to rescind my new partner request. So if you'll take me back, maybe we can work together a little while longer?" Quinn asked hopefully. Finn smiled faintly.</p><p>"That's great, Quinn. And I'm sorry." He said. Quinn furrowed her eyebrow.</p><p>"For what?"</p><p>"Well, I could be apologising for every single morally compromising position I've put you in since we've been partners. But I'm not. I'm apologising for the fact that I don't regret it at all. Every day in these past 6 months that we've been partners have been the best days of my life since Rachel passed. You and your family… you pulled me out of the pits of hell and I'll never stop owing you for that."</p><p>"You don't owe us anything. You helped me just as much as I helped you. Truth is, after my heart attack, I didn't feel like I was good enough to be back in the field. I was so close to just handing in my gun and badge and throwing in the towel. But you showed me how good it is to be a cop, and you gave me a reason to come into work every day. So I can't thank you enough for that."</p><p>Finn nodded.</p><p>"Anytime. And one more thing." Finn took a deep breath. This was going to be the hardest part for him. "About what you said in Mexico. That you… love me. Look, the reason why I didn't say anything back is that I felt guilty. Guilty to Rachel because I didn't think I would ever feel the way I felt about her about anyone else. I… I love you, Quinn. I didn't think I would ever love anyone again but I do. Everyday I spend without you just sucks. Everyday I spend with you is always amazing. I'm always thinking about you. I can't stand the idea of not having you in my life. Now, I'm not trying to pressure you into something you don't want but I just thought I should clear the air, let you know how I feel."</p><p>Quinn was speechless for a few moments as she processed what Finn had just laid on her.</p><p>"OK, well, I'm gonna go. I'll see you tomorrow." Finn murmured. He started to turn around and walk back to his car but he felt Quinn's hand on his shoulder. He turned around and Quinn leaned forward and kissed him, pulling him into her house…</p>
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